WASHINGTON — Maryland Rep. Steny Hoyer, the third-longest serving member of Congress, formally announced his retirement on the House Floor Thursday morning. The venerable lawmaker will not seek reelection and will leave Congress when his term ends early next year.
Hoyer, 86, stood before a crowd of lawmakers chanting his first name, with his family watching from above. “I have decided not to seek another term in the People’s House,” Hoyer said. “I make this decision with sadness, for I love this House.”
A Democrat representing Prince George’s County and Southern Maryland, Hoyer established himself as one of the party’s most powerful members. He spent years in the party’s leadership, rising as high as second-in-command of the U.S. House of Representatives. He stepped down in 2022, saying it was time for the next generation of Democratic leadership.
Hoyer said that the respectful politicking that marked his rise to leadership was becoming relegated to the past. As Congress changed, he remained as a vestige of what it used to be.
“The Congress I entered in 1981 was somewhat different. Most Republicans and Democrats worked together — in a collegial, productive way,” Hoyer said. “I am deeply concerned that this House is not living up to the founders’ goals.”
Republicans, including members of the GOP leadership team, also attended Hoyer’s announcement, hugging him after he finished speaking. Rep. G.T. Thompson, a Pennsylvania Republican, said after Hoyer’s speech, “If there was ever a Democrat member of Congress that literally represents the term ‘statesman,’ it’s Steny Hoyer.”
Beyond his stature as party leader, Hoyer’s career in Congress was marked by his championing of the Americans with Disabilities Act and his fervent support for Israel. One of Israel’s chief allies in Congress, Hoyer regularly led trips there with groups of lawmakers.
Contemporaries of Hoyer’s, like former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, already announced intentions to retire at the end of their terms. His decision follows a year of consternation among Democratic voters about the ages of their elected officials, after the age of former President Joe Biden became a flashpoint in the 2024 presidential election.
Father Time wasn’t Hoyer’s only challenge. The Democratic Party’s values have shifted during his 43 years in office. Support for Israel, once a benchmark for party loyalty, has evaporated. Hoyer’s steadfast defense of the nation left him out of step with many Democratic voters.
First elected to Congress in 1981, Hoyer is the longest-tenured member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland. He is in his 23rd term. Before making the jump to the U.S. Capitol, Hoyer served in the General Assembly as president of the Maryland Senate.
The retirement is expected to trigger movement in the Democratic primary to represent Maryland’s 4th District. It will become Maryland’s only congressional race without an incumbent.
Hoyer’s departure leaves Maryland’s 5th District, which includes Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s counties, as well as parts of Prince George’s and Anne Arundel counties, open for representation.
Some didn’t wait for Hoyer to step aside before entering. Quincy Bareebe, Harry Jarin, Alexis Solis, Terry Jackson and Heather Luper have all filed in recent months for the Democratic primary. Jarin, 35, who announced a primary challenge to Hoyer in late May, said the district needed a new generation of leadership.
This story will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Ben Mause at bmause@baltsun.com.
