Rep. Ron Kind, a Democrat who was expecting a rough fight to keep his Wisconsin seat next year, will instead retire, creating a new headwind for Democrats hoping to keep control of the House.
Mr. Kind, who first won office in 1997, plans to announce the decision later Tuesday, but his heavily rural district was going to be a top target for Republicans salivating over the chance to flip control of the chamber, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi celebrated him as a warrior for the working class and the environment.
“When Congressman Kind retires at the end of this term, Wisconsin and America will be losing a public servant in Congress who has dedicated decades to delivering results for the people,” she said in a statement.
Mr. Kind is one of seven Democrats serving in a district won by former President Donald Trump.
He will be the eighth Democrat not to seek reelection to a House seat heading into 2022. Nine Republicans have also announced plans to step down.
The House currently has 220 Democrats and 212 Republicans, with three seats vacant — two that had been held by Democrats and one by a Republican. If those margins hold, Republicans would need to net fewer than half a dozen seats to flip control of the chamber.
And presidents almost always see losses for their party in the House in midterm elections.
The Congressional Leadership Fund, which backed Mr. Kind’s Republican challenger Derrick Van Orden in 2020, said Mr. Van Orden was already outpacing Mr. Kind in fundraising this year, and so his departure from the race was an obvious move.
“Congressman Ron Kind made the right decision to drift off into the sunset rather than face certain defeat next fall,” said Calvin Moore, the fund’s communications director.
Mr. Kind won that 2020 race by a margin of 51.3% to 48.6% for Mr. Van Orden.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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