House Democrat Anna Eshoo announces she will not seek reelection

Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., announced Tuesday that she will not be running for reelection in 2024 after serving more than three decades in Congress.

‘I’m choosing this beautiful season of Thanksgiving to announce that I will not seek reelection,’ Eshoo, 80, said in a video accompanying the announcement. ‘And I do so with a heart filled with unending gratitude to you, my magnificent constituents.’

Eshoo will serve out her term until January 2025, her office said in a press release.

‘As my last year in Congress approaches, I will continue my work with vigor and unswerving commitment to you,’ she said. 

The California Democrat said in her video that she was the first woman and the first Democrat to represent her Silicon Valley district, and that 66 of her bills were signed into law by five presidents over the course of her tenure.

Eshoo, a member of the House Energy and Commerce committee, joins more than two dozen House lawmakers who are not seeking reelection, including seven Democrats who are retiring and another 11 who are running for other offices, according to Ballotpedia.

Fellow California Democratic Rep. Tony Cardenas announced Monday that he will also not seek reelection, and Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., announced last week that she was retiring from the House to run for governor in the state, prompting House Republicans to view her district as a prime pickup opportunity in Virginia.

Eshoo’s district, however, is solidly blue and several Democrats are already reportedly being floated as possible successors.