Since our March 19 update on congressional retirements, three members of the U.S. House of Representatives—one Democrat and two Republicans—have announced they will not seek re-election in 2026. Those representatives include:
- Rep. John Rose (R-Tenn.) announced his candidacy for Tennessee governor on March 20.
- Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate in New Hampshire on April 3.
- Rep. John James (R-Mich.) announced his candidacy for Michigan governor on April 7.
Additionally, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) announced his candidacy for Colorado governor on April 10. Since Bennet is not up for re-election until 2028, he is not included in this analysis.
Including the announcements above, nine members of Congress—four senators and five representatives—have announced they will not seek re-election in 2024
U.S. Senate
Four senators—three Democrats and one Republican—announced they will not seek re-election in 2026. They are Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn), and Gary Peters (D-Mich.).
Compared to the last four election cycles, there were two retirement announcements at this point in 2024, five in 2022, three in 2020, and none in 2018.
U.S. House of Representatives
Five representatives—one Democrat and four Republicans—announced they will not seek re-election in 2026. Of the five representatives not seeking re-election:
- One Democrat is running for the U.S. Senate
- Four Republicans are running for governor
Compared to the last four election cycles, there were eight retirement announcements at this point in 2024, 11 in 2022, five in 2020, and seven in 2018.
Between January 2011 and April 2025, Ballotpedia tracked 356 announcements from members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives who announced they would not seek re-election. January had seen the highest number of announcements of any month at 69. The fewest announcements—12—happened in June.
