Colorado congressman becomes latest House Democrat not to seek reelection
By Clare Foran, Kristin Wilson and Ethan Cohen, CNN
Colorado Democratic Rep. Ed Perlmutter announced on Monday that he will not run for reelection in November, saying in a statement that “it’s time for me to move on and explore other opportunities.”
Perlmutter becomes the latest in a long list of House Democrats to decide not to seek reelection in 2022 as House Republicans grow increasingly confident they can win back the chamber currently under Democratic control in the upcoming midterm elections. So far 26 of the 37 members who’ve announced they’re leaving the chamber at the end of the term have been Democrats. Eleven of those members, six Democrats and five Republicans, are running for Senate or governor.
The Democratic lawmaker represents the state’s 7th Congressional District.
In a statement announcing the decision, Perlmutter said, “There comes a time when you pass the torch to the next generation of leaders. I’m deeply gratified that our bench in the 7th District is deep and fortunately we have a strong group of leaders who are ready and able to take up that torch.”
A member of the moderate New Democrat Coalition, Perlmutter chairs the Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions subcommittee of the Financial Services Committee. He also sits on the Science, Space and Technology Committee, the Rules Committee and the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress.
Perlmutter served for eight years in the Colorado state Senate before coming to Washington.
After the 2018 election, Perlmutter was part of the group that unsuccessfully pushed to block Nancy Pelosi from becoming speaker and then played a key role in working out a term-limit deal. A year later, he expressed regret in an interview with Colorado Public Radio.
“I was wrong in seeking that change, just for change’s sake,” Perlmutter said in December 2019. “I think Pelosi particularly has done an excellent job in leading our caucus.”
This story has been updated with additional developments Monday.
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