Sen. Mitt Romney’s exit from Congress in January leaves the already shrinking moderate bloc in Congress one man short. For the Republican conference, his seat is safe in Utah, a deeply red state. But it may not be occupied by a centrist like Romney.
He is one of the few Republicans in the Senate who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump. And Trump held that against Romney, jumping to call him “RINO,” or Republican In Name Only, a criticism leveled by conservatives against members of their party for being liberal.
In September 2023, Romney said he won’t run for reelection and will finish serving in office in January 2025. At the time, he said, “I’m hoping that in the year and a half I have left that we’re going to be able to take on some of those issues, particularly as it relates to the deficit and debt and immigration,” he said.
His retirement coincides with many other moderate senators bowing out of running for reelection or facing an uphill battle to victory. The middle lane in Congress has been shrinking for decades, political science professor Michael Lyons at Utah State University told the Deseret News.
He said only five states have “split” Senate delegations but “From 1973 to 1994, there were never fewer than 20 such delegations.”
Read more middle lane lawmakers in the U.S. and their plans for reelection.
More Politics:
- 6 political stories that surprised me in 2023 (Deseret News)
- Maine secretary of state disqualifies Trump from 2024 primary ballot (Deseret News)
- Want to vote in Utah’s GOP presidential, primary races next year but aren’t a registered Republican? Better hurry (Deseret News)
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