Minnesotas Tina Smith will not run for re -election in 2026 in the Senate

The US senator Tina Smith announced on Thursday that after the next year she will retire, decided against a bid of 2026 for a further term of six years and, in an increasingly competitive upper west, a democratic place in the Playing.

The decision, after Smith had placed her plan, comes again for a seat that she has been with 700,000 US dollars on her campaign account since 2018 to start the year.

“I loved my job as a Senator of the United States, and after 20 years of hard and rewarding work in the public sector, I am ready to spend more time with my family,” said Smith in a video in which she announced her decision. Smith added: “This decision is not political, it is completely personal, but it is not lost that our country currently needs a strong advanced leadership, maybe more than ever.”

She said she would use her all in the last two years of term and expressed the confidence that a “deep bank of the political talent” in Minnesota would take her place after the next elections.

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Just last week, Smith repeated her intent to look for another term in the MPR show Friday. But she stopped being final when pressing.

“I always worked on the Executive Branch page. So I really had to learn what it meant to be a legislator. And I found it extremely worthwhile. I am so grateful for the opportunity to do this work. I love doing the work, ”said Smith last Friday. “It is certainly much more difficult if you don’t have the power to achieve what you want to achieve, which is now the case.”

In 2024, the Republicans received enough Senate seats to give them 53 seats and struggle the majority that the Democrats had had since 2021.

As Senator, Smith focused on a number of topics that do not always attract attention, from laws that affect American indigenous people, to residential issues and agricultural politics. She also worked on reducing the stigma for mental illnesses and opening with her own stories about dealing with depression.

Before her time in the Senate, Smith served as governor of Lieutenant under governor Mark Dayton, who after the resignation of Sen. Al Franconia to the Senate. Smith, 66, was previously a governor’s head, a mayor consultant of Minneapolis and state director of the Planned Parenthood of Minnesota.

Originally from New Mexico, Smith Minnesota made her adopted home in the 1980s when she took on a job in marketing at General Mills before conjuring up a political career as an operator behind the scenes.

Smith and her husband Archie have two adult sons and four grandchildren – all live in Minneapolis.

Minnesota was already preparing for a blockbuster election in 2026 with races for governors, attorney in general, auditor, foreign minister and every statutory seat on the ballot. Both the State House and the Senate could come from a photo finish.

An open seat in the US Senate could move millions of dollars into the state, which will mean that both parties and for an avalanche of advertisements aimed at voters.

Although the Democrats have not lost a nationwide race since 2006, the Republicans have come close to this series several times, including Razor Close ends in two 2022 races.

In view of the costs for competitive US senate, the Dash, to replace Smith, will probably start immediately and can lead to candidates who look at other offices mix their plans.

A republican, conservative podcaster Royce White had already announced a campaign by the Senate of 2026 after losing against the democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar last year.

In the interview with MPR News last week, Smith said that she felt good in the next year in terms of democratic opportunities, since the story in the meantime is difficult in the middle of the party of a president.

The race of the next year takes place in the middle of the second term of President Donald Trump, although there was a four -year gap between his season in the White House. In 2018, in the middle of Trump’s first term, the Republicans collected two seats from the Senate, but his party suffered steep losses from the US house and the Democrats took the majority.

“I suspect that an intermediate election in 2026 will be very good for Democrats. I think people will reject this kind of (Trump) leadership, ”said Smith last week.

Including Minnesota, there are 35 Senate seats on the ballot 2026. Most of them are currently held by Republicans in Stark GOP countries.

Democrats defend 13 seats. Michigan will also have an open place due to the retirement of a democratic incumbent.