Senator Dick Durbin, D-Bill, announced Wednesday that he will not seek re-election in 2026, ending his decades in Congress.
Durbin’s decision, who is the second -ranking Democrat in the Senate and the classification member of the Judicial Committee, will open a leadership position in the Chamber and is expected to trigger a competitive primary for his seat in Illinois solidly blue.
“The decision to run for re -election has not been easy. I really love the work of being a senator of the United States. But in my heart, I know it’s time to approve the torch,” he said in a statement on Wednesday and the video published on social networks. “Then, I am announcing today that I will not look for re -election at the end of my mandate.”
Durbin, 80, is tied in the fifth highest member of the Senate, which was chosen in 1996. Before that, Durbin represented Illinois in the camera for 14 years.
Among his main legislative achievements, Durbin’s office cited his movements to lead 235 federal judges through the Judicial Committee of 2021-2024 when he served as president, a list that includes the Judge of the Supreme Court Ketanji Brown Jackson.
He also directed the position of prohibiting smoking in airplanes and worked on several criminal justice reforms. Durbin was an original author of the “Law of Dream” to give young people brought to the country illegally a path to citizens, presenting it for the first time in 2001. It never happened, but led to the “Daca” program created by executive action in 2012.
Your decision to put aside a vacancy that Illinois Democrats probably rushed to fill, with a deep bank of federal and local legislators that could be contenders for the seat.
A progressive group, 314 Action, recently launched a hypothetical survey that proves a possible Democratic primary field that included representatives Lauren Underwood, Raja Krishnamorthi and Robin Kelly, as well as the governor Juliana Stratton. The group, which supports the candidates of Science and Technology origins, has backed Underwood in the past.
Krishnamorthi has been storing money for years, stealing speculation about a future offer for a higher position. H finished the first trimester of fundraising of the year with more than $ 19 million accumulated in its campaign.
The Underwood campaign closed the same period with $ 1.1 million to the $ 2 million of Kelly. And Stratton has lowered his fingers in federal politics recently, launching a federal political action committee earlier this year.
In addition to the uncertainty in Illinois, the Democratic governor JB Pritzker has not confirmed whether he plans to run for re -election next year while continuing to focus largely in counteracting President Donald Trump. If you decide to leave the governor’s mansion before a possible 2028 presidential offer, that open seat could also attract a significant interest among the Democrats.
Durbin’s seat is expected to remain in Democratic hands, although Trump obtained profits in the state in November. The then Vice President Kamala Harris won Illinois for 11 percentage points, with 54% of the votes.
The leader of the Senate minority, Chuck Schumer, Dn.y., who once fought a rivalry with Durbin for the leader of the conference, praised his work. “His deep commitment to justice, his tireless defense for needy Americans, and his wisdom in leadership has left an indelible brand in this institution, the United States and his beloved Illinois,” said Schumer. “The Senate, and the country, are better due to their service.”
Other Senate Democrats offered praise for the Durbin Congress race on Wednesday.
“For more than four decades, Senator Dick Durbin has been” a leadership pillar, integrity and unwavering dedication to the people of his native state of Illinois and La Nación, “Senator Brian Shatz, D-Hawaii, a member of the leadership of the party in the Chamber said in a statement.
Durbin is the fourth Democrat of the Senate who has announced plans to withdraw before the mid -period elections of 2026, along with the sens. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire; Gary Peters from New Hampshire; and Tina Smith of Minnesota.
The Democrats face a uphill to win the majority of the Senate: in addition to defending those and other seats next year, they would have to turn four seats controlled by the Republican Party.
