As both parties wrestle for control of the Senate next year, several lawmakers in the House are looking to trade their seats in the lower chamber for greater legislative influence.
At least 12 lawmakers so far have announced they would forgo reelection in the House to run instead for a Senate seat in November, marking the largest cohort of such retirements since the 2014 midterm elections, when 13 members did the same. Of the current 12, nine are Democrats and three are Republicans.
A handful of the Senate races are competitive opportunities for Republicans to flip control of the upper chamber, including in Michigan and West Virginia. The latter is the GOP’s best shot of winning control in November after incumbent Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) opted not to run for reelection, shifting the seat from a toss-up to “Solid Republican,” according to the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
His absence in the race has already attracted multiple GOP candidates seeking to replace him, including Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV), who has served in the House since 2015.
“[In] the Senate, you just have a bigger platform,” Mooney told the Washington Examiner. “In the Senate, you get to confirm or reject the president’s nominees to Cabinet positions. We don’t have that in the House of Representatives.”
The Senate also offers greater influence over the court system, Mooney said, pointing to the upper chamber’s power to accept or reject the president’s judicial nominations.
“The circuit courts and the Supreme Court — who the judges are is a big deal,” he said. “The U.S. Senate gets to confirm judges or reject judges, and I think we ought to be very strong in the Senate when I get there rejecting left-wing activist judges.”
Rep. John Curtis (R-UT), who announced earlier this year he would not seek a fourth term in the House, also pointed to the influence senators have as he seeks to replace GOP Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) in November. Although the race is safely Republican, the open seat gives the party a chance to elect a more conservative candidate following Romney’s term as a centrist.
“I think if we’re honest, there’s a bigger platform,” Curtis told the Washington Examiner. “It’s an opportunity to take the work we’ve done here and move it to a different level. I have watched for the last six years so much of the legislation crafted in the Senate, and by the time it gets to us, it’s a thumbs up or thumbs down.”
Many candidates for Senate come from outside Congress, a fact they use to differentiate themselves from the so-called establishment. But serving in the House for years also gives candidates something to run on, both Mooney and Curtis said.
“I have a record. It’s a strong conservative voting record,” Mooney said. “These elections go along and people say what they think or what they’re going to do, and I just point to my actual proven conservative voting record.”
“I would not want to debate me,” Curtis said with a smile. “Because I’m in the thick of everything. … I’ve actually been able to move the needle on a number of issues. And so I do think it is an advantage.”
Several other candidates have used their time in the House to raise their national profile, including Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who is eyeing the Senate seat in California once held by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). Schiff has used his experience leading the first impeachment of former President Donald Trump as a key element of his campaign and stands to benefit from the coveted endorsement of Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
“California needs another senator who [is] able to take on the big fights, protect our rights and our democracy but also has the ability to get things done,” Schiff told the Beverly Press. “All the things I’ve been doing as a House member to meet the needs of people in Los Angeles, [I’ll] be able to do in a much greater degree both for Los Angeles and for the rest of the state.”
Schiff’s brand could provide him a boost in the crowded primary, which also features two of his fellow Democratic colleagues, Reps. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Katie Porter (D-CA).
Other House lawmakers benefit from institutional support, such as Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), who is running for the Senate in Michigan. However, Slotkin is expected to face a tough general election if she’s tapped as the party nominee.
Meanwhile, some House members don’t have the blessing of national party leaders. One example is Mooney, who must compete against Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV), the hand-picked candidate of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
While a full-time job in the House can boost one’s resume, it can also complicate schedules as lawmakers seek to balance their legislating with time on the campaign trail.
Curtis, who lives more than 2,100 miles away from Washington, noted how the competing priorities have affected his schedule, prompting him to minimize the waking hours he spends on flights.
“[I’ve] committed to a lot of red-eye flights. You need extra time, you fly through the middle of the night, right?” Curtis said. “You save a whole day by doing that. Then I just know on a personal level, I have told my wife and my kids, this is 24/7 for the next five months, six months.”
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There are 34 Senate seats up for grabs in the 2024 election cycle. Of these, Democrats must defend 23, compared to just 11 for Republicans, and nearly all competitive seats are currently held by Democrats, putting them on the defensive as they try to maintain their slim majority.
Democrats currently hold a 51-49 edge in the Senate, with the advantage of having Vice President Kamala Harris as a tiebreaker vote if needed. As a result, Republicans only need to flip one Senate seat on net to win the majority should they take back the White House in 2024. If they don’t regain the Oval Office, the party must secure two extra Senate seats.