Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) announced Wednesday he will not seek re-election in the 2026 midterms.
“I am announcing today that I will not seek reelection to the U.S. House of Representatives,” Newhouse stated in a message on social media. “Serving the Fourth District of Washington has been the honor of my life, and this decision comes with no reservations or remorse, only gratitude for the tremendous opportunity to have represented my home state in Congress.”
Newhouse was one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach President Trump following events on January 6, 2021. He remains among the last Republican members of the U.S. House who supported the impeachment resolution against the former president.
The representative, who represents a safe red district, narrowly defeated a Trump-backed GOP challenger in the 2024 general election. His departure from Congress could leave Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.) as the sole remaining House Republican who voted to impeach Trump after November’s elections. However, Valadao faces a challenging reelection bid in a competitive district.
On the Senate side, where many Republicans who voted to convict President Trump have retired or announced plans to step down, GOP senators Bill Cassidy (La.) and Susan Collins (Maine) are competing for re-election this cycle. If both lose their bids, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) would become the last Republican senator who voted against impeaching Trump.
Not including Newhouse, 42 House members—23 Republicans and 19 Democrats—have announced they will not seek re-election next year.
Newhouse won his seat by a margin of six percentage points in the previous election, defeating Trump-backed Jerrod Sessler after Sessler had beaten him in the GOP primary. Washington uses a top-two primary system, meaning the top two vote-getters advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation.
Sessler, a businessman and former NASCAR driver who is also a Navy veteran, will run for re-election in his district in 2026. The primary for that seat will be held in August. Sessler has stated he was present in Washington on January 6, 2021, attended President Trump’s speech that day but did not enter the Capitol building. He has defended Jan. 6 rioters, including those who were prosecuted and later pardoned by the president for their actions at the Capitol. Sessler has referred to these individuals as “innocent Americans” and has disseminated debunked conspiracy theories regarding the 2020 presidential election.
