Longtime Democrat Representative Announces He Will Not Seek Reelection

Another member of the House of Representatives has decided not to seek reelection.

Longtime Democrat Representative Steve Cohen of Tennessee has decided he will not seek reelection.

Cohen has been in office since 2007 and is the only Democrat representative from Tennessee.

CBS News reported that Tennessee’s new congressional map is what led him to not seek reelection:

Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee announced Friday that he’s dropping his bid for reelection in the state’s ninth congressional district, a seat he’s held since 2007.

He made the decision in light of the Tennessee legislature’s redistricting, which affected his district in Memphis. Cohen, 76, is Tennessee’s only Democrat in Congress.

“This is by far the most difficult moment I’ve had as an elected official,” he said as he opened his remarks.

Cohen, a fourth-generation resident of the Memphis area, said he’ll be retiring from public life.

He said he “considered” running in one of the new districts, but said they are “nothing like the ninth district that I’ve represented.”

“I’ve had the great honor to represent the ninth district for the last 19 and a half years. And it’s been a district that is a majority African-American district,” he said.

The redistricting vote by the GOP-dominated state legislature last week drew protests for splitting the Memphis population into parts of several different districts that lean more Republican.

🚨HE GONE: Rep. STEVE COHEN (D-TN) is OFFICIALLY DROPPING OUT of reelection after Tennessee Republicans WIPED OUT his racially gerrymandered district

After 20 YEARS riding that discriminatory seat in Memphis, the Democrat machine’s golden ticket is GONE pic.twitter.com/K96cTaoNbz

— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) May 15, 2026

In recent months, dozens of House members have either decided not to run for reelection or have stepped down.

Ballotpedia broke down the numbers of the lawmakers who are not seeking reelection and gave details on what some of them will do next:

Fifty-five U.S. representatives — 20 Democrats and 35 Republicans — will not seek re-election in 2026.

Of the 55 members not seeking re-election:

Twenty-eight — 13 Democrats and 15 Republicans — are retiring from public office

Sixteen — seven Democrats and nine Republicans — are running for the U.S. Senate

Ten — all Republicans — are running for governor

One Republican is running for state attorney general

Republicans currently hold a slim House majority, with 217 representatives to the democrats’ 212.

There are also currently five vacant seats, including one that was held by Democrat Rep. David Scott of Georgia, who died in April.