The problems for the Democrats just keep growing.
They are in very real danger of losing even more seats in congress in next year’s election.
And Chuck Schumer was red with rage after finding out this long-time Democrat Senator won’t seek reelection in 2026.
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) has announced he will not seek reelection in 2026.
A four-decade career in the U.S. Senate comes to an end
The announcement ends his more than four-decade career representing Illinois and his rise to the number two position in Senate Democrat leadership.
Durbin has been the Senate Democrat Whip, the number two position in leadership, since 2005.
The Illinois Senator, who is now 80, is in his fifth Senate term and was first elected to the House in 1982.
His decision not to run will set off a major scramble among Democrats for his Senate seat in solidly Democrat Illinois and for his leadership position in Washington, D.C.
Many in the party are pushing for a new and more aggressive approach to confronting Republican President Donald Trump in his second term.
And they are pushing for an even further tilt to the Left among party leadership.
Many political observers believe that is why Durbin has joined the growing list of Democrat retirements.
“The decision of whether to run has not been easy,” Durbin said in a video posted to X. “I truly love the job of being a United States senator. But in my heart I know it’s time to pass the torch.”
Durbin served seven terms in the House before succeeding his longtime mentor, Paul Simon, in the Senate in 1996.
Durbin has been the No. 2 Senate Democrat since 2005.
Durbin was largely responsible for the rise of Barack Obama
Durbin helped shape the career of an up-and-coming former community organizer and State Senator from Illinois, Barack Obama.
Obama was only four years into his first term in the U.S. Senate when he was elected president.
Obama wrote in a post on X after Durbin’s retirement announcement that “I would not have been a United States Senator – and certainly would not have been President – had it not been for Dick’s support.”
As the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee during Democrat President Joe Biden’s term, Durbin led the confirmation of leftist Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson in 2022.
He also organized the Democrats’ opposition when President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans pushed through the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett in late 2020.
Durbin is part of a Senate leadership team that has been in place for almost two decades, alongside the current Senate Democrat leader, New York’s Chuck Schumer, 74, and the late Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, who retired in 2017 and died in 2021.
The race for Durbin’s No. 2 spot is likely to be seen as an early test for who could eventually replace Schumer.
There is a push by many in the Democrat caucus to replace the old guard with a group of younger, more aggressive, and more progressive groups of Democrats.
Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz, one of the Democrats who is considered a possible contender for the second-ranking job, put out a statement within minutes of Durbin’s announcement saying that Durbin has been “a pillar of leadership, integrity, and unwavering dedication to the people of his home state of Illinois and the nation.”
24/7 Politics will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
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