Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin to Skip Senate Run in 2024

Rep. Jamie Raskin Announces Decision Not to Run for Senate Seat

In an exciting turn of events, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) has announced that he will not be running for retiring Sen. Ben Cardin’s (D-Md.) Senate seat in 2024. Instead, he has decided to run for reelection to the House of Representatives in Maryland’s extraordinary 8th District.

Raskin made this announcement in a lengthy statement released on Friday. He explained, “At this moment, I believe the best way for me to make the greatest difference in American politics in 2024 and beyond is this: to run for reelection to the House of Representatives.”

Although Raskin would have been a strong candidate for the open Senate seat, he has chosen to focus on his current role. Sen. Cardin, who announced his retirement in May, will be leaving behind a significant opportunity.

Just last month, Raskin expressed his serious consideration of the Senate seat during an interview on CNN. He acknowledged that such openings are rare and can take decades to occur again.

Leading Impeachment Efforts

Raskin gained prominence during the term of President Donald Trump for his leadership in efforts to impeach the former president. He played a crucial role as a member of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the Capitol. Currently, he serves as a ranking member of the House Oversight Committee.

In December 2022, Raskin revealed that he had been diagnosed with lymphoma, a serious but curable form of cancer. However, he provided an update in April 2023, announcing that he had completed his chemo-immunotherapy treatments and was in remission with a 90 percent prognosis of no relapse.

In his statement on Friday, the Maryland Democrat reiterated his opposition to Mr. Trump and the former president’s supporters, emphasizing the need to “stop them in their political tracks.”

Raskin urged his friends and supporters to rally behind the Democratic party, urging them to “elect sweeping Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress and secure a landslide for Joe Biden and the Democrats in 2024.”

While acknowledging the encouragement he received from people all over Maryland to run for Mr. Cardin’s seat, Raskin emphasized that these are not normal times. He believes that the fight for democratic institutions, freedom, social progress, and human rights in America is far from over.