With midterms more than a year away, a record number of lawmakers are eyeing the exits

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With just under 15 months to go until the 2026 midterms, nine senators and 21 House members have announced they don't plan to run for reelection, each a modern record for this point before the election, according to an NPR analysis of congressional campaign data since 2017.

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The more typical path is for a governor to continue their time in politics by running to be one of their state's senators. Currently, 12 senators are a part of this former governor caucus, including both Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, Florida Sen. Rick Scott and New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who is retiring at the end of this term.

Jessica Taylor, the Senate and Governors editor for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, said this cycle's inversion of the typical governor-to-Senate pipeline is the highest the country has seen in at least 90 years. One potential reason is the partisan gridlock that has hampered the power of Congress.

"In this current political environment that we're in, I think it just speaks to the polarization," Taylor said. "The Senate used to be the world's greatest deliberative body, but a lot of those people that worked across the aisle have retired or been defeated."

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https://www.npr.org/2025/08/13/nx-s1-5495665/lawmakers-leaving-washington-run-for-governor-congress-2026-midterms

There is a list of those deciding not to run for reelection on the link.