Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) announced on Jan. 7, 2026, that he will not seek re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2026.

In a speech announcing his retirement, Hoyer said, “I stand here now after some 60 years in public service, including nearly 45 years as a Member of this House. I’ve won elections and lost a couple, celebrated triumphs and suffered setbacks, enjoyed friendships and endured hardships. [...] I have decided not to seek another term in the People’s House. I make this decision with sadness, for I love this House – an institution the Framers designed to reflect the will of the American people and to serve as the guardian of their liberty and their democracy.”

In 1981, Hoyer ran in a special election for the U.S. House in Maryland’s 5th Congressional District after the district was declared vacant. The district’s then-incumbent Rep. Gladys Spellman (D-Md.) had suffered a heart attack and fallen into a coma two days before the 1980 general election. Although Spellman won the election, the U.S. House passed H.Res.80 in February 1981, which declared the district vacant due to Spellman’s condition. She later died in 1988. In the special election, Hoyer defeated Audrey E. Scott (R) 56% to 44%.

Hoyer won by a median of 38.5 percentage points in his 22 re-election bids in which he ran with major party opposition in the district. Hoyer’s widest margin of victory (MOV) in the district was in 2006, when he won by 66 percentage points. His narrowest MOV in the district was in 1992, when he won by nine percentage points.

During Hoyer’s tenure in the U.S. House, he served in multiple leadership positions. From 1989 to 1995, Hoyer served as chair of the House Democratic Caucus. When Republicans controlled the U.S. House from 2003 to 2007 and 2011 to 2019, Hoyer served as House minority whip. When Democrats controlled the U.S. House from 2007 to 2011 and from 2019 to 2023, Hoyer served as House Majority Leader.

As of Jan. 6, 2026, independent race forecasters The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the 2026 general election for the district as Solid Democratic. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Democratic.

As of Jan. 8, 2026, Hoyer is one of 55 members of the U.S. Congress — nine U.S. Senate members and 46 U.S. House members — who have announced they will not seek re-election to their current seats in 2026.

Of the 46 U.S. House incumbents who are not seeking re-election:

• Twenty — 13 Democrats and seven Republicans — are retiring from public office.
• Fourteen — seven Democrats and seven Republicans — are running for the U.S. Senate.
• Eleven — one Democrat and 10 Republicans — are running for governor.
• One Republican is running for state attorney general.

Compared to the last four election cycles, there were 40 retirement announcements at this point in 2024, 41 in 2022, 34 in 2020, and 42 in 2018.

Between January 2011 to January 2026, Ballotpedia followed 348 announcements from U.S. House members who announced they would not seek re-election. January had the highest number of members announcing they would not run for re-election at 57. The fewest announcements took place in June at 15.