MAGA Republican Announces Retirement, Giving Dems an Opportunity

Yet another Republican is calling it quits on his congressional career.

Montana Representative Ryan Zinke announced Monday that he will not seek reelection, ending his time in Washington.

In a letter to his constituents, Zinke said that the decision was predicated on recent health issues, writing that he had undergone “multiple surgeries” since 2023 to correct injuries he sustained while serving as a Navy SEAL.

“The injuries sustained from a career in Special Operations are not immediately life threatening, but the repair cannot be deferred any longer and recovery will require considerable time,” Zinke wrote. “My judgement and experience tell me it is better for Montana and America to have full-time representation in Congress than run the risk of uncertain absence and missed votes.”

The Whitefish native has represented Montana since 2014, when he garnered national attention on the campaign trail for referring to Hillary Clinton as the Antichrist. Between stints on Capitol Hill, Zinke was tapped by Donald Trump to serve as his first-term interior secretary. Zinke worked in that job for just two years, from 2017 to 2019, but nonetheless racked up 18 federal investigations into his behavior, ranging from probes into numerous alleged Hatch Act violations to misuse of public funds.

Zinke’s decision further imperils the Republican House majority, which currently has 218 Republicans to 214 Democrats. The lower chamber also has three vacancies due to the November resignation of Democratic Representative Mikie Sherrill, now New Jersey governor, as well as the January resignation of Representative Majorie Taylor Greene and the passing that same month of Representative Doug LaMalfa.

All 435 House seats will be contested in the upcoming midterm elections, a reality that has Republicans fretting, as preceding elections have suggested that the cycle could be overtaken by a tsunami-esque “Blue Wave.” At least three Republican districts are confidently expected to flip (they include two districts in California and another in Utah), while the Nebraska race to replace retiring Republican Representative Don Bacon is likely to go to Democrats as well, according to the Cook Political Report.

Four Democrats had already filed to run in their party’s primary to replace Zinke before he announced his retirement.