Rep. Susan Davis (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that she will not run for reelection in 2020, joining a growing list of lawmakers who are bowing out of Congress after next year.
So far, 15 House members have decided to step aside; Davis’ announcement came just hours after Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas) said that he would not seek another term. Davis is the third Democrat who will be leaving, Flores the 12th Republican.
Davis, first elected to her seat in 2000, disclosed her retirement in a letter to her constituents in California’s 53rd district, which includes part of San Diego and is heavily Democratic.
“My decision today represents a desire to live and work ‘at home’ in San Diego,” she wrote. “I will continue to give my all for the next sixteen months and will work as earnestly and as enthusiastically as I have always tried to do.”
Davis, 75, won reelection last year with 69% of the vote. She is a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee and the Education and Labor Committee.
The other Democrats giving up their House seats are Jose Serrano of New York and Dave Loebsack of Iowa. The Republicans who are retiring include four others from Texas ― Pete Olson, Mike Conway, Will Hurd and Kenny Marchant ― as well as Martha Roby of Alabama, Rob Woodall of Georgia, Susan Brooks of Indiana, John Shimkus of Illinois, Paul Mitchell of Michigan, Rob Bishop of Utah and Sean Duffy of Wisconsin.
Four senators whose seats are on the ballot in 2020 have announced that they won’t seek reelection: Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.). Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) is retiring at the end of this year because of health issues.
California state Assemblyman Todd Gloria, who used to work for Davis and is now running for mayor of San Diego, tweeted Wednesday that she was “a steady hand in Congress” and his “lifelong mentor.”
The 2016 edition of the Almanac of American Politics described her a “low-profile” House member “who avoids the media spotlight in favor of working quietly behind the scenes on issues that range from education and women’s health to local and national military matters.”
“I am grateful to have you as engaged and concerned citizens of our great nation and the San Diego community we love. I know you will pick your next representative wisely,” Davis wrote in her letter to constituents. “That person will also represent me, so I will look to those who put this noble pursuit of public interest above self-interest. I sincerely hope that has been a mark of my service.”