Congressman Garret Graves Announces Decision Not to Seek Re-Election
BATON ROUGE, La. — After years of litigation over the state's congressional map, lawmakers have approved a new map adding a second majority-Black district. This change required one of the five Republican districts to be redrawn, and Congressman Garret Graves found his district unfavorably altered.
With the new district now favoring Democratic voters, Graves announced today he will not seek re-election. After consulting with friends, family, and supporters, Graves issued a statement saying, “It is evident that a run in any temporary district will cause actual permanent damage to Louisiana’s great representation in Congress.”
The revised map affects Louisiana’s first opportunity to chair the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which controls funding for major projects like bridges and flood protection. Graves expressed his disappointment, saying, “Admittedly, it is a serious disappointment to miss the historic opportunity to champion Louisiana’s priorities in this committee.”
Political analysts commented on Graves' decision, noting, “His best bet probably would have been running against a fellow Republican. He opted not to challenge Julia Letlow and felt that Cleo Fields had a better hand. Now, he’s sitting on about $5 million and will have to decide his next move.”
Speculation has arisen that Graves might run for mayor of Baton Rouge, but analysts downplayed this possibility. “He has said he is not running for mayor. If he did, he would be a formidable candidate, but he says he’s not doing that,” one analyst explained.
Another potential move for Graves is a run against Bill Cassidy (R) for U.S. Senate in 2026. Analysts added, “Bill Cassidy is not real popular among Republicans in some quarters because he voted for the articles of impeachment against Donald Trump and to uphold the election, and Garret Graves didn’t do either one of those.”
Rumors have also circulated about Graves possibly moving to Washington D.C. to lobby for a firm, but his campaign dismissed these as mere speculation.
