Rep. Garret Graves, Louisiana Republican, announced after months of speculation that he will be leaving Congress at the end of this year.
His decision Friday comes after a new congressional map from the Louisiana redistricting process changed his once-safe Sixth District to a new majority Black voter district that Democrats should win in November.
“After much input from constituents, consultation with supporters, consensus from family, and guidance from the Almighty, it is clear that running for Congress this year does not make sense,” Mr. Graves said in a statement.
The new map was snarled in the courts since the state lawmakers passed it in January, with one court decision ruling it a racial gerrymander. But the Supreme Court decided in May that the map would stand, at least for the 2024 election.
The substantial change to his district, which now spans nearly 200 miles and slashes through the center of Louisiana from the capital of Baton Rouge to Shreveport in the state’s northwest corner, left the lawmaker with a tough choice: stay put and face a likely defeat or bounce to a neighboring district and challenge an incumbent Republican.
His fellow Louisianans in Washington, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, encouraged Mr. Graves to stay put, and believed that he could beat Democratic Louisiana state Sen. Cleo Fields and help the House GOP maintain its razor-thin majority without any casualties.
Mr. Graves, who has represented the area around Baton Rouge since 2015, said that running in any “temporary district will cause actual permanent damage” to Louisiana’s small but strong representation in the House.
“Campaigning in any of these districts now is not fair to any of the Louisianans who will inevitably be tossed into yet another district next year,” he said.
Mr. Graves’ exit will also see the last of the three architects of last year’s debt-ceiling deal leaving Washington. The lawmaker became a top negotiator for the Fiscal Responsibility Act, acting as a right-hand man to then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, alongside Rep. Patrick McHenry, North Carolina Republican.
But Mr. McCarthy left Congress in December after being ousted from the speakership, and Mr. McHenry announced earlier this year that he would hang it up after 10 terms in the House.
“As a consistent champion for Louisiana and chief architect of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, Garret has left an indelible mark that will be felt for generations to come,” Mr. McHenry said on X. “I’m confident this is not the end of his storied career in public service.”
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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