Rep. Ted Deutch on Monday became the latest House Democrat to announce he will not seek reelection this year, bringing the number of retirements in the caucus to 31 as the party tries to hold on to the majority in the November elections.
Mr. Deutch, Florida Democrat, is giving up his seat in Congress to take a leadership position with the American Jewish Committee, a non-governmental and non-profit organization, CBS Miami first reported.
“After serving the public for more than 15 years, I have decided I will not seek re-election this November. Public service was instilled in me by my father who earned a Purple Heart in the Battle of the Bulge, and it has been a tremendous privilege to serve the people of Palm Beach and Broward Counties in Congress since 2010. I am incredibly grateful to my constituents for their support and friendship,” he said in a statement.
Mr. Deutch was first elected in 2010 and is a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee and chairman of the House Ethics Committee. Last Congress, he was reelected to serve as chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa and global counterterrorism.
He was thrust into the national spotlight in 2018 when Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in his district was the scene of a school shooting that left 17 dead.
“Our community was profoundly changed on February 14, 2018. Seventeen students and teachers of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School were killed that day, and I have tried every day since to be there for their families and to help them honor the memories of their loved ones in all the ways they are working to make our schools and community safer,” Mr. Deutch said.
He added, “I have also tried to support the survivors in any way I can, though it is their powerful voices that have helped create desperately needed change. The Parkland families and student survivors inspire me every day.”
The 31 House Democrats who so far called it quits this year is the highest for the party since 1992 when 41 Democrats retired.
Since 1978, both parties have seen at least 30 of their incumbents retire in one cycle three times ahead of the midterms, according to electoral data compiled by the Brookings Institution. The most recent was in 2018 when Democrats recaptured the House majority after 34 GOP members retired and the party lost 41 seats in the mid-term election.
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney praised Mr. Deutch for his tenure in office.
“I want to extend my gratitude to Rep. Ted Deutch for his two decades of public service to South Florida and our country. From the Florida Senate to the U.S. House, Rep. Deutch has served his constituents admirably, leading on some of the most important issues in Congress as Chairman of the House Ethics Committee and senior member of the House Judiciary and House Foreign Affairs committees,” Mr. Maloney said in a statement.
Republicans boasted about Mr. Deutch’s retirement calling it a harbinger of the midterm election cycle Democrats are about to face.
“Ted Deutch knows House Democrats’ majority is doomed so he made the smart decision to forgo reelection,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Mike Berg said in a statement.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
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