For one senior lawmaker on Capitol Hill, it's time to bid farewell.
Oregon Democrat Earl Blumenauer, who has served in the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly 30 years, announced that he will not seek reelection next year.
Blumenauer, 75, has faithfully served as the representative of Portland, Oregon and its inner suburbs for 14 terms. As an unabashed liberal, he has always won landslide elections in his deep blue congressional district with at least 67% of the vote.
Blumenauer has lived in Portland his entire life. Known for his bicycle commutes, Blumenauer is a strong proponent of mass transit and green energy initiatives.
He most recently voted to provide aid to Israel after last month's Hamas attack, despite that view being less aligned with the Democratic Party's base these days. The congressman released this statement following the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks:
“I am horrified by the terrorist attacks in Israel, our strongest ally in the region. I firmly stand with the thousands of Israelis in harm's way. Civilian casualties and kidnappings brought on by extreme elements of Hamas are an unacceptable escalation of tensions. It is more important than ever that Israel is united for peace and security.”
Blumenauer sits on the powerful Ways and Means Committee.
It is extremely unlikely there will be competition for his open seat, but the race to replace him still matters, as Axios Portland explains:
…Although this open seat won't likely change the makeup of the House of Representatives — because it is in solid Democratic territory — whoever replaces Blumenauer is less likely to be caught in the turmoil of two-year election cycles and potentially able to take more risks than a swing seat candidate might.
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He's championed a number of issues that have helped shape Portland, including bicycling, legalizing cannabis, and improving SE 82nd Ave.
Other efforts have found less traction, such as convincing the White House to declare a national climate emergency and changing agricultural policy to support smaller-scale, environmentally friendly practices.
Beyond his time in Congress, Blumenauer has been an advocate for the Portland community for over half a century.
“Earl was always a member of Congress who put policy first,” Democratic Party operative Kari Chisholm told Axios. “He leaves huge progressive shoes to fill.”
Blumenauer plans to focus on promoting solutions for Portland's ever-changing problems, such as investment opportunities and renewable energy initiatives.
The longtime representative strove “throughout [his] career to make Portland one of the most livable cities in the country,” he told Axios.
“No one's going to confuse us with that now, but I think that there are opportunities for us to turn the corner, and I'm looking forward to being a part of that.”
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