Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow won’t seek reelection in 2024
(CNN) — Sen. Debbie Stabenow will not seek reelection in 2024, the longtime Michigan Democrat said Thursday, opening up a Senate seat in a key swing state.
“Inspired by a new generation of leaders, I have decided to pass the torch in the U.S. Senate. I am announcing today that I will not seek re-election and will leave the U.S. Senate at the end of my term on January 3, 2025,” Stabenow, 72, said in a statement.
Stabenow’s decision comes just months after Democrats held on to control of the Senate in the midterm elections. First elected to the chamber in 2000, she rose to become the No. 3 Democrat in the Senate and is the chair of the policy and communications committee, as well as the agriculture committee. Her decision will create a vacancy in party leadership.
“No one embodies the true Michigan spirit more than Debbie Stabenow,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. “From the state legislature to the House of Representatives, and for the last two decades in the United States Senate, Debbie has made a difference for Michiganders every step along the way.”
Democrats are already facing a tough map in 2024, but Stabenow’s decision puts another seat in a crucial swing state into play.
The party is defending 23 of the 34 seats up for reelection next year, including three seats in states that backed Donald Trump by at least eight points in 2020: West Virginia, Montana and Ohio.
The party must also defend seats in several battleground states: Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
This story has been updated with additional information.