Dem
47
GOP
53
In every cycle, a few dozen House members call it quits for various reasons. Some run for another office, some just have reached a ripe old age and have had enough, and some just can't stand being in Congress because nothing ever happens there anymore. Members who don't run for reelection leave open seats behind, and these are easier to flip than seats that have an incumbent. So keeping track of open seats is important. Here are the 20 seats where the incumbent is not running in 2026. There will surely be more this year. In 2024 there were 45 open seats, in 2022 there were 50, and in 2020 there were 48. Here are seats where there has already been a retirement announcement:
| Representative | Party | District | PVI | Reason for retirement |
| John Rose | Republican | TN-06 | R+17 | He is running for governor of Tennessee |
| Randy Feenstra | Republican | IA-04 | R+15 | He is running for governor of Iowa |
| Dusty Johnson | Republican | SD-AL | R+15 | He is running for governor of South Dakota |
| Byron Donalds | Republican | FL-19 | R+13 | He is running for governor of Florida |
| Mike Collins | Republican | GA-10 | R+11 | He is running to challenge Jon Ossoff |
| Ralph Norman | Republican | SC-05 | R+11 | He is running for governor of South Carolina |
| Andy Biggs | Republican | AZ-11 | R+10 | He is running for governor of Arizona |
| Buddy Carter | Republican | GA-01 | R+8 | He is running to challenge Jon Ossoff |
| Andy Barr | Republican | KY-06 | R+7 | His is running for Mitch McConnell's open Senate Seat |
| John James | Republican | MI-10 | R+3 | He is running for governor of Michigan |
| Don Bacon | Republican | NE-02 | D+3 | He doesn't agree with Trump on much and it would be a tough fight |
| Chris Pappas | Democratic | NH-01 | D+2 | He is running for the Senate |
| Josh Gottheimer | Democratic | NJ-05 | D+2 | He ran for governor of New Jersey and lost the primary |
| Angie Craig | Democratic | MN-02 | D+3 | She is running for Tina Smith's open Senate seat |
| Mikie Sherrill | Democratic | NJ-11 | D+5 | She is running for governor of New Jersey and won the primary |
| Raja Krishnamoorthi | Democratic | IL-08 | D+5 | He is running for Dick Durbin's open Senate seat |
| Haley Stevens | Democratic | MI-11 | D+9 | She is running for Gary Peters' open Senate seat |
| Robin Kelly | Democratic | IL-02 | D+18 | She is running for Dick Durbin's Senate seat |
| Jan Schakowsky | Democratic | IL-09 | D+19 | She is 81 and retiring from politics |
| Dwight Evans | Democratic | PA-03 | D+40 | He had a stroke last year and is retiring at 71 |
Are there good pick-up opportunities for either party here? Not so much. Seats in the range R+5 to D+5 could be in play, but outside that range, it is tougher. Most Republicans who are retiring from the House are in safe districts. Only the districts of John James and Don Bacon are likely to be in play. In contrast, five Democratic seats will definitely be in play.
In addition to the above members who have officially announced they will not run for reelection in 2026, there are a number of others who are on the retirement watch list, either because they are planning to run for another office or they are simply way, way, way past the age at which anyone would retire in other professions. Here is a list of members who might toss in the towel later this year. Given the ages of the people involved, there could also be some... uh, "involuntary" retirements here.
| Representative | Party | District | PVI | Potential reason for retirement |
| Hal Rogers | Republican | KY-05 | R+31 | Age (87) and potential retirement from politics |
| Barry Moore | Republican | AL-01 | R+27 | He might run for the Senate |
| Harriet Hageman | Republican | WY-AL | R+23 | She might run for governor |
| Jim Baird | Republican | IN-04 | R+15 | Age (80) and potential retirement from politics |
| John Carter | Republican | TX-31 | R+11 | Age (83) and potential retirement from politics |
| Tom Tiffany | Republican | WI-07 | R+11 | He might run for governor |
| Elise Stefanik | Republican | NY-21 | R+10 | She might run for governor |
| Wesley Hunt | Republican | TX-38 | R+10 | He might run for the Senate |
| Virginia Foxx | Republican | NC-05 | R+8 | Age (82) and potential retirement from politics |
| Tom McClintock | Republican | CA-05 | R+8 | Age (69) and potential retirement from politics |
| Nancy Mace | Republican | SC-01 | R+6 | Likely run for governor |
| Cory Mills | Republican | FL-07 | R+5 | Potential run for higher office |
| Henry Cuellar | Democratic | TX-28 | R+2 | He has been indicted for taking bribes and more |
| Mikie Sherrill | Democratic | NJ-11 | D+5 | She is running for governor |
| Rosa DeLauro | Democratic | CT-03 | D+8 | Age (82) and potential retirement from politics |
| Emanuel Cleaver | Democratic | MO-05 | D+12 | Age (80) and potential retirement from politics |
| Jim Clyburn | Democratic | SC-06 | D+13 | Age (85) and potential retirement from politics |
| Doris Matsui | Democratic | CA-07 | D+16 | Age (80) and potential retirement from politics |
| Steny Hoyer | Democratic | MD-05 | D+17 | Age (86) and potential retirement from politics |
| Frederica Wilson | Democratic | FL-24 | D+18 | Age (82) and potential retirement from politics |
| Ritchie Torres | Democratic | NY-15 | D+27 | He might challenge Kathy Hochul for governor |
| Maxine Waters | Democratic | CA-43 | D+27 | Age (86) and potential retirement from politics |
| Danny Davis | Democratic | IL-07 | D+34 | Age (83) and potential retirement from politics |
| Nancy Pelosi | Democratic | CA-11 | D+36 | Age (85) and potential retirement from politics |
For the Democrats, there is actually some potential good news here. There are seven octodems who are in "fairly safe" to "very safe" districts. If they retired, they would almost certainly all be replaced by much younger Democrats. The Democrats are having a lot of trouble with younger voters and part of the problem is that so many of the Democratic politicians are so old. Injecting some new blood could be a real plus and provide a bench for the future. (V)