Thirty-nine members of the U.S. Congress—eight U.S. Senate members and 31 U.S. House members—have announced they will not seek re-election in 2026. Compared to previous election cycles, 39 is the most retirement announcements we have followed at this point since 2018.
Since our Sept. 15 update, four U.S. House members have announced that they will run for other offices in 2026 rather than another term. Here are the four members who have announced their retirements since our last update, as well as how independent race forecasters have rated the 2026 general election for each district or seat these incumbents currently represent:
- Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) announced on Oct. 15 that he will run for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts. Race forecasters have rated the election for the district as either Solid or Safe Democratic.
- Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) announced on Oct. 6 that he will run for the U.S. Senate in Texas. Race forecasters have rated the election for the district as either Solid or Safe Republican.
- Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) announced on Sept. 30 that he will run for governor of Arizona. Race forecasters have rated the election for the district as a Toss-up.
- Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-Wisc.) announced on Sept. 23 that he will run for governor of Wisconsin. Race forecasters have rated the election for the district as either Solid or Safe Republican.
U.S. House of Representatives
Thirty-one members of the U.S. House—11 Democrats and 20 Republicans—will not seek re-election in 2026. Of the 31 members not seeking re-election:
- Eight—five Democrats and three Republicans—are retiring from public office.
- Twelve—six Democrats and six Republicans—are running for the U.S. Senate.
- Ten—all Republicans—are running for governor.
- One Republican is running for attorney general of Texas.
At this point in the last four election cycles, there were 25 retirement announcements in 2024, 27 in 2022, 29 in 2020, and 26 in 2018.
U.S. Senate
Eight members of the U.S. Senate—four Democrats and four Republicans—announced they will not seek re-election in 2026. Sens. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and Gary Peters (D-Mich.) are retiring from public office. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) is running for governor of Alabama.
At this point in the last four election cycles, there were six retirement announcements in 2024, five in 2022, four in 2020, and two in 2018.
Between January 2011 and October 2025, 384 members of the U.S. Senate and House announced they would not seek re-election. January had seen the highest number of announcements of any month at 69. The fewest announcements—16—happened in June.
Click here to read more about members of the U.S. Senate who are not seeking re-election in 2026, and here for more about members of the U.S. House who are not seeking re-election in 2026.