Democratic Senator Tina Smith will not nominate him for his re -election in Minnesota
Senator Tina Smith, Die Men, announced on Thursday that she will not be nominated for his re -election and will retire instead after the end of her mandate in 2026.
In a short video clip posted on social media, Smith told her supporters: “I wanted you to hear directly from me that I decided not to run to re -elect the Senate in the United States in 2026.”
In her video, Smith notes that while she had the role, she was “ready to spend more time with my family,” adding that her grandchildren and children moved to Minynabolis and that her 95 -year -old father this summer.
“This decision is not political, it is completely personal. But it was not lost that our country needs a strong progressive leadership at the present time, and perhaps more than ever.”
Smith, 66, was appointed for the first time in the Senate in 2017 to fill the vacant job left by the democratic Senator at the time, Franken resigned in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct. Smith won special elections the following year, then other elections in 2020 to serve a period of six years.
She was a major player in Minnesota’s policy long before joining the Senate, and served as a state ruler, and before that, as a great assistant to the main democratic politicians.
Smith is the second Democrat in the Senate to announce their retirement before the mid -term elections, after the Senator in Michigan Gary Peters. This means that the Democrats will have to defend at least two open seats as they face a hard rise to the control of the Senate.
With its current division between 53 Republicans and 47 Senate members who fall behind with Democrats, the party needs a net profit of four seats to control the Chamber, because Vice President JD Vance controls a tie.
However, the Democrats indicated that they are confident that they would stick to the Smith seat in Minnesota, where Vice President Kamala Harris won 4 points in November. Republicans last won the state level elections there in 2006.
“No Republican has won a Senate in Minnesota for more than 20 years and Democrats will continue to occupy this seat in 2026.”
President Donald Trump’s offer in Minnesota in 2024 was the best by a Republican presidential candidate in the state for 20 years, with less than 47 % of the votes.
The unexpected opening may mean a crowded primary among Democrats looking for a higher position.
“We have a deep seat of political talent in Minnesota, a group of leaders who are more than prepared to capture work and practice us forward,” Smith said in the video announcement.
“I am excited to make room for them to go forward.”