Democrat Sen. Debbie Stabenow announces she will not seek re-election in 2024

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Michigan Democrat Sen. Debbie Stabenow, whose career in the Senate spans more than two decades, has announced she will not seek re-election in 2024.

“Inspired by a new generation of leaders, I have decided to pass the torch in the U.S. Senate. I am announcing today that I will not seek re-election and will leave the U.S. Senate at the end of my term on January 3, 2025,” Stabenow said in a statement Thursday.

Formerly a member of the Michigan state Senate and later a member of the U.S. House, Stabenow, 72, was first elected to the Senate in 2000.

Reflecting on her career and what brought her to make the decision, Stabenow said: “Under the cloud of unprecedented threats to our democracy and our basic freedoms, a record-breaking number of people voted last year in Michigan. Young people showed up like never before. This was a very hopeful sign for our future.”

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In the final years of her term, Stabenow, who currently serves as the chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, said she will focus on passing legislation that will better the lives of her constituents.

“For the next two years, I am intensely focused on continuing this important work to improve the lives of Michiganders. This includes leading the passage of the next five-year Farm Bill which determines our nation’s food and agriculture policies,” she said.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee wasted no time promising to make the open Michigan Senate seat a key target in 2024.

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“Senate Democrats don’t even have a campaign chair yet and they are already dealing with a major retirement. We are going to aggressively target this seat in 2024. This could be the first of many Senate Democrats who decide to retire rather than lose,” NRSC communications director Mike Berg said in a statement.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which works to elect Democrats to the Senate, expressed confidence that Republicans would not take the seat in 2024.

“In 2022 Michigan Democrats won resounding statewide victories, and we are confident Democrats will hold this Senate seat in 2024,” said DSCC spokesman David Bergstein.

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A Democratic source in Michigan wouldn’t provide any specific names on who may run to succeed Stabenow but told Fox News that “Democrats have a deep bench in Michigan” and pointed to statewide victories in November’s elections.

Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this article.