Andrew Trunsky
California Democratic Rep. Alan Lowenthal announced his retirement Thursday after a decade in Congress.
Lowenthal, who was first elected to California’s Long Beach-based 47th district in 2012, is the 20th House Democrat to announce they would not seek reelection ahead of the 2022 midterms. He said in a statement that it was “time to pass the baton.”
“It is time to rest and surround myself with the benefits of a life well lived and earned honorably in the service of my fellow citizens,” Lowenthal added, saying that he was looking forward to spending time with his children and grandchildren.
While Lowenthal holds a solidly Democratic seat, he is just the latest House Democrat to retire ahead of what forecasters say could be challenging midterm elections for the party. Other Democratic retirements include Reps. John Yarmuth of Kentucky and Peter DeFazio of Oregon, the chairs of the House Budget and Transportation Committees, respectively, and Rep. Ron Kind of Wisconsin, a moderate who has held a now-swing seat for over two decades.
In addition to the 20 House Democrats not running in 2022, 12 House Republicans have said the same. Among those are Reps. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois and Tom Reed of New York, the former chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, and Rep. Devin Nunes of California, who announced that he would resign from Congress at the end of the year to help former President Donald Trump’s new social media venture.
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