Democrat Illinois Rep. Cheri Bustos announced Friday that she will not seek re-election in 2022 and will retire from Congress.
“As I have rounded each new decade of my career, I’ve taken time to reflect on how I can best serve. That’s how, 10 years ago, I decided to run for Congress,” Bustos said in a video. “And it’s why today, I’m announcing I will not seek reelection after completing this term. It will be a new decade, and I feel it’s time for a new voice.”
Bustos previously served as the chairwoman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) and has served in Congress for five terms.
WATCH:
Today, following a decade of service in Washington, I am announcing that I will not seek reelection in Congress after completing my fifth term. pic.twitter.com/eWQYJADyyA
— Cheri Bustos (@CheriBustos) April 30, 2021
After the November 2020 elections, Bustos reportedly shared her frustration with Democrats’ results in the House of Representatives, as the party has lost a number of seats they were hoping to win. (RELATED: ‘I’m Furious’: DCCC Chairwoman Rep. Cheri Bustos Reportedly Blames Polls For Democrat Losses In The House)
During a phone call with House Democrats, Bustos reportedly slammed polls and turnout models as the reason Democrats did not expand their majority, losing many seats polls showed Democrats winning.
“I’m furious. Something went wrong here across the entire political world,” Bustos reportedly said as some were projecting Democrats to pick up as many as 15 seats. “Our polls, Senate polls, Gov polls, Presidential polls, Republican polls, public polls, turnout modeling, and prognosticators all pointed to one political environment – that environment never materialized,” she continued. (RELATED: ‘We Have A Mandate!’: Pelosi Reportedly Hammers Distraught, Beleaguered House Dems)
Bustos won her election by just four points in 2020.