Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) announced on March 6, 2026, that he will not seek re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2026.

In a statement announcing his retirement, Issa said, “But after a quarter-century in Congress — and before that, a quarter-century in business — it’s the right time for a new chapter and new challenges. [...] There is still work to be done throughout 2026 both in Washington and my beloved current 48th District - and as many days that remain, I’ll dedicate each one of them to the people I serve and the indispensable nation I have sworn to protect as a soldier in the Army and as a proud and grateful Member of the People’s House of Representatives.”

In 2000, Issa ran for his first term in the U.S. House in California’s 48th Congressional District, after then-incumbent Rep. Ronald Packard (R-Calif) announced he would not seek re-election. Issa defeated Peter Kouvelis (D) in the general election 61% to 28%.

In 2002, Issa began representing California’s 49th Congressional District due to redistricting. That year, Issa won re-election without facing major party opposition in the general election. He won by a median of 21 percentage points in his seven subsequent re-election bids, in which he ran against major party opposition in the district. Issa’s widest margin of victory (MOV) in the district was in 2010, when he won by 31 percentage points. His narrowest MOV in the district was in 2016, when he won by 0.6 percentage points.

Issa opted not to seek re-election to the U.S. House in 2018, but in 2020, he ran in California’s 50th Congressional District. That year, he won by eight percentage points. In his next two re-election bids, Issa ran in California’s 48th Congressional District due to redistricting. He won re-election in 2022 by 21 percentage points and in 2024 by 19 percentage points.

As of March 3, 2026, independent race forecasters The Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball have rated the 2026 general election for the district as a Toss-up. Inside Elections rated it Tilt Democratic.

As of March 6, 2026, Issa is one of 65 members of the U.S. Congress — 10 U.S. Senate members and 55 U.S. House members — who have announced they will not seek re-election to their current seats in 2026. 

Of the 55 U.S. House incumbents who are not seeking re-election:

• Twenty-eight — 13 Democrats and 15 Republicans — are retiring from public office.
• Fifteen — seven Democrats and eight 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 42 retirement announcements at this point in 2024, 45 in 2022, 34 in 2020, and 46 in 2018. 

Between January 2011 and March 2026, Ballotpedia tracked 354 announcements by U.S. House members that they would not seek re-election. January had the highest number of members announcing they would not run for re-election at 61. The fewest announcements took place in June at 15.