Sen. Rob Portman. WCPO photo
By: Mariel Carbone , Zach McAuliffe
CINCINNATI — Senator Rob Portman announced Monday morning that he will not seek re-election for a third term to the U.S. Senate in 2022.
“This was not an easy decision because representing the people of Ohio has been an honor,” Portman said. “But I’ve been doing this a long time, longer than I ever intended.”
Portman, 65, has 30 years of public service, and he has been in the Senate since 2010. Before that, he had 12 years of service in the House of Representatives.
In that time, Portman said it has gotten harder and harder “to break through partisan gridlock,” and this played into his decision to not seek re-election.
“This is a tough time to be in public service,” Portman said. “We live in an increasingly polarized country where members of both parties are being pushed further to the right and further to the left, and that means too few people who are actively looking to find common ground.”
Reposted with permission from WCPO 9 Cincinnati.
WCPO will be updating this story. To see the updated story, go to: https://www.wcpo.com/news/government/local-politics/rob-portman-will-not-seek-re-election-to-senate
