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Sen. Harry Reid says he won't seek re-election

 
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, who suffered serious eye and facial injuries in a Jan. 1 exercise accident at his Las Vegas home, said he had been contemplating retiring from the Senate for months. [New York Times]
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, who suffered serious eye and facial injuries in a Jan. 1 exercise accident at his Las Vegas home, said he had been contemplating retiring from the Senate for months. [New York Times]
Published March 28, 2015

WASHINGTON — Sen. Harry Reid, the tough tactician who has led Senate Democrats since 2005, will not seek re-election next year, bringing an end to a three-decade congressional career that culminated with his push of President Barack Obama's ambitious agenda against fierce Republican resistance.

While not totally unexpected, his decision to forgo what would have been a difficult race still shook the Capitol on Friday and represented the first major transition in the Democratic leadership of the Senate or House in years. He endorsed Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York to succeed him in 2017.

Reid, 75, who suffered serious eye and facial injuries in a Jan. 1 exercise accident at his Las Vegas home, said he had been contemplating retiring from the Senate for months. He said his decision was not attributable either to the accident or to his demotion to minority leader after Democrats lost the majority in November's midterm elections.

"I understand this place," Reid said. "I have quite a bit of power as minority leader."

He has already confounded the new Republican majority this year by holding Democrats united against a proposal to gut the Obama administration's immigration policies as well as a human-trafficking measure Democrats objected to because of an antiabortion provision.

"I want to be able to go out at the top of my game," Reid said.

In a statement, Obama called Reid "not only an ally but a friend" and said the man from tiny Searchlight, Nev., "never backed down from a tough decision." In comments on National Public Radio, the president said he would miss Reid's "curmudgeonly charm."

Reid and the president had a good personal relationship, but their staffs clashed often on strategy and priorities.

Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader who has dueled with Reid for years, said that while his nemesis was "underestimated often, his distinctive grit and determined focus nevertheless saw him through many challenges. They continue to make him a formidable opponent today."

Schumer, who helped Democrats capture the Senate in 2006 and has been Reid's right-hand man in political messaging, is now the favorite to replace Reid.