Democratic Rep. Bobby Rush, who represents Illinois’ 1st congressional district, announced Tuesday that he will not seek a 16th term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Rush first assumed office in January of 1993.
“After nearly three decades in Congress, I have been reassigned,” Rush said in a statement. “Let me make it clear that I am not retiring, I am returning. I’m returning home, returning to my church, returning to my family and grandchildren – but my calling to a life of service is stronger than ever. I am expanding my tent beyond the guardrails of Congress.”
Rush is the only politician to beat former President Barack Obama in an election. In the 2000 Democratic primary for Illinois’ 1st congressional district, Rush beat Obama with 61 percent of the vote. Obama won 30 percent of the vote.
“My faith tells me that there’s a reason I’m still here,” Rush said in a statement. “I am not leaving the battlefield. I am going to be an activist as long as I’m here in the land of the living, and I will be making my voice heard in the public realm — from the pulpit, in the community, and in the halls of power.”
According to The Washington Post, Rush is the 24th House Democrat to announce they will not seek reelection in the 2022 midterm elections. In an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times on Monday, Rush said his grandchildren played a role in his decision to retire from Congress.
“I don’t want my grandchildren… to know me from a television news clip or something they read in a newspaper,” Rush said in an interview. “I want them to know me on an intimate level, know something about me, and I want to know something about them. I don’t want to be a historical figure to my grandchildren.”
As Townhall has been covering, several House Democrats have announced their retirement in recent weeks. Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier (CA) announced in November that she will not be a candidate in the 2022 midterms after serving since 2008. New Jersey Democratic Rep. Albio Sears announced his retirement last month. Texas Democratic Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, who has served for nearly 30 years, announced her retirement in November.