Virginian Rep. Gerry Connolly announced Monday that he would have to step down as the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, and will not seek re-election.
Connolly’s announcement came only months after he beat out New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to be head Democrat on the committee, despite the fact the 75-year-old Connolly learned shortly after the election that he had esophageal cancer.
Ocasio-Cortez has since left Oversight, and joined the Energy & Commerce Committee, which she always wanted to participate in since it deals with energy policy and health care, her two big priorities.
But it’s part of a larger trend happening within the Democratic Party: After years of valuing experience, and accusations of promoting a gerontocracy, the party is slowly passing the torch to its younger members.
Earlier this year, Senator Gary Peters of Michigan announced that he will not seek re-election, which set off a competition between state Senator Mallory McMorrow, Rep. Haley Stevens and progressive activist and physician Abdul El-Sayed in hopes of replacing him.
Peters has had the unenviable job of not only being a swing-state Democrat but also leading the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee during two rough cycles — first in 2022 when Democrats over-performed and flipped a Senate seat, and again in 2024, when Democrats lost four seats and the majority.
“I'm confident we're going to win. It’s going to be a good Democratic year,” Peters told The Independent. “In the case of Michigan, we’ve got a really strong bench.”
Peters said that the decision not to run for re-election is a personal one, driven in part by family.
Minnesota Senator Tina Smith, who is 67 and was appointed to the Senate in 2018, cited her grandchildren as a reason for her retirement.
“I could just say that, for me, I thought about how I wanted to spend the next 10 years of my life,” she told The Independent. “ I realized ... I actually really like my family, and I wouldn't be able to spend more time with them” if she ran and won again.
Smith played a key role in writing the climate parts of the Inflation Reduction Act. And, as the only Democratic senator to work at a Planned Parenthood, she easily could have been enticed to stay, given the fights ahead on abortion rights.
Her retirement paves the way for potentially the first Native American female senator, since Minnesota’s Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan announced her candidacy for Smith’s job.
Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin, who is 80, also announced just last week that he would not run for re-election. That paves the way for Illinois to potentially elect only its second Black female senator in Lieutenant Governor Julianna Stratton — or Rep. Lauren Underwood if she decides to get in the race.
In addition, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, who is 78, announced she will not seek re-election, which means Chris Pappas could become the first openly gay male senator.
It’s clear plenty of Democrats see this as an ideal time to step aside.
“They’re taking the opportunity to leave on their terms, with dignity and with their legacies celebrated, instead of enduring primaries that will be all about how they’re not meeting the moment, are too old, and can’t hang,” Amanda Litman, who leads candidate recruitment and support organization Run for Something, texted The Independent . “It’s the right move both personally and politically.”
At the same time, it’s hard to ignore the political realities.
In recent years, Democrats had to deal with the crisis of the late Dianne Feinstein being too frail to fulfill her duties in the Senate, which derailed important judicial confirmations.
In just the past year, four Democratic members of Congress died while in office. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas died in office only to be replaced by Rep. Sylvester Turner, who died last month after only two months in office. Bill Pascrell died in office last year. He was 87.
Raúl Grijalva, who had been undergoing treatment for cancer last year, missed most votes only to be bumped from his perch at the top of the House Natural Resources Committee in November. He died last month, meaning Democrats are now two votes shy in their House minority.
Then, of course, there is Joe Biden. His decision to run for president despite being 81 already rankled plenty of voters in 2024 before his disaster of a debate performance led to the party pushing him out.
Democrats still have plenty of elderly leaders, to be sure. At 83, Senator Bernie Sanders has been criss-crossing the country with Ocasio-Cortez. Plenty of Democratic voters were furious with Senator Chuck Schumer, 74, for voting for the stopgap spending bill last month.
Given his popularity with progressives, Senator Ed Markey will seek re-election despite being 78. The same goes for moderate Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, who is 70.
At the same time, plenty of the most vibrant Democrats who are determining what it means to be a member of the party are decidedly younger. That included 35-year-old Ocasio-Cortez with her anti-oligarchy message, 48-year-old Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin’s more moderate posturing, or 43-year-old Pete Buttigieg’s decision to go on dude podcasts.
Dave Portnoy isn’t buying Trump’s blame stock market on Biden
Trump says kids may get ‘2 dolls instead of 30’ due to possible toy shortage: Live
Trump’s ‘honeymoon’ is meeting real resistance. Can he survive the blowback?
How Democrats are trying to turn MAGA’s ‘flood the zone’ strategy against Trump
Trump blames Biden as US economy shrinks for first time in three years
Trump administration signs minerals deal with Ukraine in key move for Russian peace
