Derek Kilmer, moderate Democratic congressman from Washington state, announces retirement
Democratic Rep. Derek Kilmer unexpectedly announced Thursday that he wouldn't seek a seventh term representing Washington's 6th Congressional District. This constituency, which is based in the Olympic Peninsula and Tacoma, supported Joe Biden 57-40, and Democrats are favored to keep it. It's possible, though, that the party will need to be on guard going into the August top-two primary to make sure a pair of Republicans don't advance to the general election.
Both Inside Elections' Erin Covey and the Seattle Times' Jim Brunner quickly relayed speculation that one prominent Democrat, Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz, could end her campaign for governor and instead run to replace Kilmer.
Democratic state Sen. Emily Randall, meanwhile, confirmed she was considering her own bid. Randall's 2018 election made her one of the first two lesbians to serve in the state Senate, and she'd be the state's first LGBTQ+ member of Congress.
Covey also mentioned the following fellow Democrats as possible contenders:
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State House Speaker Laurie Jinkins
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Pierce County Councilmember Ryan Mello
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Kitsap County Commissioner Christine Rolfes
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Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards
On the GOP side, state Sen. Drew MacEwen wrote on social media he'll decide "very soon."
Kilmer won elected office for the first time in 2004 when he unseated Republican state Rep. Lois McMahan 50-48 in a tight race for the state House. This would turn out to be the only close contest of his career. Kilmer won a promotion to the state Senate two years later 60-40, and he turned in a similar performance in the 2010 red wave in what Roll Call described as the most conservative Democratic-held seat in the chamber.