Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO), who is chairman of the House Committee on Transportation, is reversing course on his 2026 election plans and will retire at the end of this term.
Graves, who is 62, told the Wall Street Journal in an interview that he will withdraw his paperwork to run for a 14th term for Missouri’s 6th District. He first came to Congress in 2000 and was set to face an August primary, but he made the decision earlier this week to suspend his plans.
“I think it is time for me to step down,” Graves told the outlet. “I filed for reelection, and I was still kind of evaluating … my next chapter in life, and what that might look like.”
Graves won the seat in 2024 with roughly 70% of the vote, while President Donald Trump carried the district over former Vice President Kamala Harris by 69% to 30%. Missouri’s mid-decade redistricting only marginally changed the lines of the heavily GOP district.
The exit by Graves from Capitol Hill means a rare opportunity for an open seat with no incumbent to battle, which could widen a GOP primary field. Two Republicans are already on the ballot to challenge Graves, and the candidate filing deadline is March 31. Given the strong GOP lean, the winner of the primary is likely a shoo-in for the general election.
Graves is the 53rd member to announce they would not seek reelection to the House this fall. The mass exodus comes as the GOP struggles to maintain its razor-thin majority in the lower chamber.
Graves said redistricting in his home state, nor the breakdown in decorum and hyper-partisanship of Congress, factored into his decision to retire. He told the Wall Street Journal he wants to find funding to modernize the U.S.’s air traffic control system before he departs Capitol Hill.
HERE’S WHERE HOUSE AND SENATE RETIREMENTS STAND IN 2026
Graves’s retirement is significant, especially given his powerful leadership position on the transportation committee that he’s held since 2019.
The Missouri congressman asked House leadership to remain as the top Republican on the transportation panel last year, successfully securing a waiver to do so despite being term-limited as a committee chairman. Republicans have six-year limits on their chairmen, while Democrats have no term limits.