Since our March 19 update on congressional retirements, three members of the United States House of Representatives—one Democrat and two Republicans—have announced that they will not run for 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.
Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) also announced his candidacy for Colorado governor on April 10. This analysis excludes Bennet, who is not up for re-election until 2028.
Including the announcements above, nine members of Congress—four senators and five representatives—have announced that they will not seek reelection in 2024.
U.S. Senate
Four senators—three Democrats and one Republican—have announced that they will not seek re-election in 2026. They are Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and Gary Peters (D-Mich.).
Compared to the previous four election cycles, there were two retirement announcements 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 previous four election cycles, there were eight retirement announcements in 2024, eleven in 2022, five in 2020, and seven in 2018.
Between January 2011 and April 2025, Ballotpedia tracked 356 announcements by members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives that they would not seek reelection. January had the highest number of announcements of any month, with 69. The month of June saw the fewest announcements (12).
