Politics

Rep. Jerry Nadler, Top Democrat And Trump Foe, Will Not Seek Reelection

Jerry Nadler from New York City, United States of America, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Democratic New York Rep. Jerry Nadler will not run for reelection in 2026, the New York Times reported Monday.

Nadler, 78, the longest-serving current Jewish member of the U.S. House and a liberal pillar of the chamber’s Democratic Caucus, announced he will not seek reelection in 2026, concluding a 34-year run that placed him at the epicenter of civil rights battles and impeachment fights that defined an era. Nadler told The New York Times he wrestled with the decision amid what he called a “generational reckoning” inside the Democratic Party.

Nadler chaired the House Judiciary Committee during both of the impeachments of President Donald Trump. He served as a House manager of Trump’s first impeachment.

Nadler focused his tenure on legal oversight and progressive legislation, championing LGBTQ rights, abortion access, and long-term care for 9/11 survivors while challenging the scope of presidential authority. Representing a deep-blue district spanning Manhattan’s West Side and parts of Brooklyn, he held his seat with ease for over 30 years as voters consistently backed Democratic candidates by wide margins.

Nadler refused to weigh in on who should replace him, but he admitted several close allies are likely to jump in. Nadler is prepared to back Micah Lasher, a trusted former staffer now serving in the state Assembly, if Lasher enters the race, according to The New York Times.

Pressed by the Times on whether other senior Democrats should also step aside, Nadler avoided naming names but said the party would benefit from a degree of turnover.

“I’m not saying we should change over the entire party,” he told the outlet. “But I think a certain amount of change is very helpful, especially when we face the challenge of Trump and his incipient fascism.”

Questions over age and fitness for office have reshaped the political landscape since former President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 race following a disastrous debate. The generational divide shaping national politics has reached Capitol Hill, where senior Democrats like Democratic California Rep. Maxine Waters, 86, and Democratic Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, 82, are pressing ahead with reelection bids.

Nadler’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.