Dem
47
GOP
53
Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-VA), a long-serving liberal member of the House from Fairfax County, will not run for reelection. He said: "The sun is setting on my time in public service, and this will be my last term in Congress." His district, VA-11, is an affluent district in the D.C suburbs with a PVI of D+18. This will set off a feeding frenzy among ambitious Virginia Democrats, but will not put the seat in danger.
Connolly had cancer of the esophagus, it went into remission, and now it is back. It is so bad that he is immediately stepping down as ranking member of the powerful House Oversight Committee right now. This is not a good sign. Powerful members rarely give up their power willingly. The contest to replacing him as ranking member is now beginning. Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) is interested, but he is 70 and many younger Democrats think it is time for a generational shift. Some of them are pushing for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She is a bit of a longshot since she is not even a member of the committee.
Connolly's work will live on after he is gone. He was the driving force in building the D.C. Metro's Silver Line, which connects the capital to the Dulles International Airport. He also pushed hard for the redevelopment of Tysons Corner as well as the now-bustling Mosaic District. And he supported rural areas of his district, including the creation of a 40-mile hiking trail across Fairfax County. He was an all-too-rare-these-days congressman who cared about his constituents and tried to get things done for them, rather than grandstanding on hot-button issues. (V)