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Romney will not run for reelection; calls for ‘new generation’ of leaders
Sep 13, 2023, 12:01 PM | Updated: 7:50 pm
WASHINGTON — Sen. Mitt Romney said in a video Wednesday that he will not seek reelection.
“While I am not running for re-election, I am not retiring from the fight,” the Republican representing Utah in the U.S. Senate said.
In the video message he released on social media to make the announcement, Romney said he will continue to serve out his term that ends in January 2025. He listed a number of challenges that include rising national debt and climate change and was critical of former President Donald Trump and current President Joe Biden on both of those policies and foreign policy.
He specifically mentioned what he called the ambitious authoritarian nations of China and Russia as problems to be faced and said the issues aren’t being confronted. He said political motivations too often impede the solutions that current challenges demand.
“Frankly, it’s time for a new generation of leaders. They are the ones that need to make the decisions that shape the world they will be living in,” Romney said.
He said he would be in his mid-80s if he were elected to and finished an additional term. Nationally, the age and capabilities of political leaders have become a hot topic.
“It really is a profound honor to serve Utah and the country and I thank you for the opportunity to do so.”
My message to Utahns on my Senate reelection plan: pic.twitter.com/kgbsfIxMeR
— Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) September 13, 2023
Romney has previously been critical of Trump, including before and while he was in office, creating friction with some Republicans in and out of Utah. In 2016, he delivered a speech at the University of Utah, denouncing Trump who was leading the GOP race for candidacy.
Romney was sworn into his current office on Jan. 3, 2019, replacing long-serving Sen. Orrin Hatch. Romney, born in 1947, is 76 years old. He was the governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and was the Republican nominee for president in the 2012 election, losing to popular incumbent Barack Obama.
Currently, he serves on several Congressional committees including foreign relations, homeland security and budget.
When Trump was recently indicted in New York, Romney said the following:
“I believe President Trump’s character and conduct make him unfit for office. Even so, I believe the New York prosecutor has stretched to reach felony criminal charges in order to fit a political agenda. No one is above the law, not even former presidents, but everyone is entitled to equal treatment under the law.”
