Stephanie Liebergen
What would it take to see more bipartisanship in Congress?
Poll after poll has found Americans want lawmakers to work together, but changing the culture in the Capitol is hard.
LEARN MOREPosted: 2:19 p.m. EST Nov 22, 2023
More than two dozen House members have announced plans to retire at the end of this Congress, and about half of them are running for another office.
For example, Rep. Abigail Spanberger is running for governor in Virginia, Rep. Dan Bishop is running for attorney general in North Carolina, and about a dozen are running for a Senate seat.
Of the 33 senators whose terms are up, seven have said they're not running for re-election.
In his announcement video, Sen. Joe Manchin said "I believe in my heart of hearts that I have accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia."
Manchin's retirement is arguably the biggest loss for Democrats, as no other Democrat is likely to be able to win in deep-red West Virginia. Other retiring Senate Democrats, like Delaware's Sen. Tom Carper and Maryland's Sen. Ben Cardin, are vacating seats that are likely to stay blue.
For Arizona voters, they're still waiting to hear whether newly independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema will run for reelection. She already has a Democratic challenger in Rep. Ruben Gallego and former TV anchor Kari Lake is one of the top names running for the GOP nomination. If Sinema runs, it could set up a competitive three-way race.
With the current slim majorities in the House and the Senate, control of either chamber could change. Add in the race for the White House and down-ballot competitions, and the 2024 election season is expected to see record-breaking campaign spending.
