Speaker Nancy Pelosi suffered another major blow today as a swing seat House Democrat from the always-critical state of Florida announced she will not run again.
Rep. Stephanie Murphy, who flipped a GOP held battleground seat in 2016, said she will leave Congress to spend more time with her family.
Murphy is a leader of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition who once expressed interest in running against Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) in the next election.
She has two school-aged children so she may be sincere in her reason to leave.
But most won’t see it that way and instead will see her decision as another sign of the coming red wave for the GOP in 2022.
Or it could be that she fears the radicals are taking over the Dems and she is not on board with what they want to do.
“I’ve decided not to seek another term in Congress,” Murphy said.
“Serving Central Florida has been the honor of my life, but it’s also been incredibly challenging for my family and me.
“It’s been a real honor for me to serve in Congress, but it does come at a personal sacrifice. My time away has been hard on my family and my kids and on me,” Murphy said.
“This was not an easy decision, but it was the right decision.”
From CNN:
In May, Murphy ruled out a bid for US Senate to challenge Republican incumbent Marco Rubio for his seat, partly because she acknowledged how difficult it has been for Democrats to win statewide in the state.
Florida Republicans have dominated statewide races for more than a decade.
The last time a Democrat won a Senate seat in Florida was in 2012.
“We’ve had too many close losses in Florida, and so I wanted to use my experience from winning tough races to help the party prepare itself,” Murphy said in May.
Despite news of her retirement, Murphy left the door open on running for future office.
“I know now, I’m not done with public service” Murphy said Monday.
Prior to serving in Congress, Murphy served as a national security specialist in the office of the US Secretary of Defense.
I've decided not to seek another term in Congress. Serving Central Florida has been the honor of my life, but it's also been incredibly challenging for my family and me.
This was not an easy decision, but it is the right decision. Thank you for everything. pic.twitter.com/UaOufbPOSo
— Stephanie Murphy (@MurphyforFL) December 20, 2021
This is huge news!
FL07 is 1 of 5 seats Republicans need to take back the House in 2022.
If you live in Orlando or Seminole — & want to flip this seat from 🔵🔜🔴 —
fill out this volunteer form & I’ll connect you with a local organizer: https://t.co/EKmm4RPntj
— #ThePersistence (@ScottPresler) December 20, 2021
She's the 22nd House Dem not to seek reelection this cycle
But Murphy says decision is unrelated to odds of winning a redrawn district (which may be more winnable than expected) – nor Dems' ability to keep the House.
Notably, she did *not* rule out a future run for office.
— Sarah Ferris (@sarahnferris) December 20, 2021
