Republican Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana, an ally of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, announced on Friday that he will not be running for reelection after his state was redistricted.
Graves, an ally of the former speaker, had his district redrawn by the Louisiana Legislature to become the second Black-majority district in the state, while preserving other Louisiana districts like House Speaker Mike Johnson’s and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise’s districts. In February 2022, the state Legislature approved the map and overrode Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards’ veto the following month.
“After much input from constituents, consultation with supporters, consensus from family, and guidance from the Almighty, it is clear that running for Congress this year does not make sense,” Graves said in a statement obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation. “It is evident that a run in any temporary district will cause actual permanent damage to Louisiana’s great representation in Congress. Campaigning in any of these districts now is not fair to any of the Louisianians who will inevitably be tossed into yet another district next year.”
BREAKING: @RepGarretGraves says he will NOT run for re-election in Congress #lalege #lagov pic.twitter.com/m0I8sWvv0H
— Shannon Heckt (@ShannonHeckt) June 14, 2024
In April 2023, Graves introduced a continuing resolution that was passed by the House the following January to avert a government shutdown. This continuing resolution was criticized by members of the House Freedom Caucus who said the spending bill was continuing “Pelosi levels with Biden policies.” The previous continuing resolutions passed in September and November of 2023 after the former Speaker was ousted by eight House Republicans in October 2023.
“This has been an amazing experience resulting in thousands of new friendships and unrivaled progress for the area we represent,” Graves said in a statement. “In this divisive and politically-polarized environment, to receive over 80 percent of the vote in the last election confirms that we were getting it mostly right. Thank you for the opportunity to serve.”
Featured image credit: (Flickr/Architect of the Capitol)
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