Dem Rep. Susan Davis announces she will not seek reelection

Rep. Susan Davis (D-Calif.) announced Wednesday she will not seek reelection in 2020, calling the decision to retire “very difficult.”

“My decision today represents a desire to live and work ‘at home’ in San Diego,” she said in a letter to supporters. “I will continue to give my all for the next sixteen months and will work as earnestly and as enthusiastically as I have always tried to do.” 

{mosads}“Other than the near weekly cross-country commutes, there is a lot I will miss about representing you in Washington. The opportunity to serve and contribute has been everything I could have ever imagined,” she added.

Davis is the third House Democrat to announce their retirement so far, though more Republicans have announced their retirement since the GOP lost the House last year.

She represents a safely Democratic district that she won by nearly 40 points in 2018. California’s 53rd Congressional District also backed Hillary Clinton by about 35 points in 2016. 

First elected to the House in 2000, Davis touted her position as ranking member and chairwomen of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel and her efforts to expand career service opportunities and to support U.S. service members, including through improved health care. 

Referencing the current dynamics on Capitol Hill, she said she found “making government work better for you” to be “the most fulfilling part of my job” but that “sometimes finding common ground has been challenging, especially in this increasingly divisive political climate.”

Davis said she does not know what she will do next but plans to continue serving her community.

“I know you will pick your next representative wisely. That person will also represent me, so I will look to those who put this noble pursuit of public interest above self-interest. I sincerely hope that has been a mark of my service,” she wrote. 

California Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D) honored Davis’s service in Congress, tweeting that she “has been a blessing to our nation.”

.@RepSusanDavis is an incredible advocate for #SanDiego. Her steady hand in Congress for the last 20 years has been a blessing to our nation. As my lifelong mentor, I can’t wait to have her home full time. We talked today and she’s ready to volunteer on my mayoral campaign. pic.twitter.com/lNhRvEWN4W

— Todd Gloria (@ToddGloria) September 4, 2019