The West Virginia mainstay says he’s not running for reelection in 2024, leaving his seat vulnerable to Republican takeover
Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin has announced that he will not seek re-election in 2024.
In a video statement released on social media, Manchin stated that “after months of deliberation and long conversations with my family I believe, in my heart of hearts, that I have accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia. I have made one of the toughest decisions of my life and decided that I will not be running for re-election to the United States Senate.”
Manchin, the former governor of West Virginia, was first elected to Congress in 2010, in a special election held after the death of Senator Robert Byrd (D-W.V.). In recent years Manchin, one of the most moderate members of the Democratic caucus, has found himself increasingly at odds with the party. The animosity came to a head after the 2020 election when Democrats secured a slimg majorities in the Senate and Manchin helped blocked key parts of his own party’s agenda.
His decision to not seek reelection almost certainly means Republicans will gain a seat in the Senate in deep-red West Virginia, where Donald Trump won by nearly 40 points in 2020.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
