Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) announced Monday that he plans to retire at the end of his fourth term, shaking up a generally Democratic stronghold state with an open U.S. Senate seat in 2024.
The decision by Carper, a fixture of Delaware politics, will open his seat for the first time since 2001, when he was elected to the Senate after serving as a state treasurer, governor, and congressman. He has held public office in Delaware since Jimmy Carter was president. His seat is viewers by many as a safe seat for Democrats to maintain control of in the 2024 elections.
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"While nothing is forever, the Delaware Democratic Party is blessed today with a bench as strong as any I've ever seen in the 50 years that I've called Delaware home," Carper said during a speech on Monday in Wilmington. "If there was ever an opportune time to step aside and pass the torch to the next generation, it's coming , and it will be here on January 3, 2025."
"But, until then, God willing, I'll continue working 60-hour weeks and coming home on the train most nights as long as Martha keeps leaving the light on for me."
Carper is the fourth Democratic senator to decide not to run for reelection next year following Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). On the Republican side, Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) decided to run for governor instead.
There were signs that the senior Delaware Senator was retiring. After Cardin, Carper had the lowest fundraising total among Democrats whose terms are up next year, raising $195,000 in the first quarter.
In Delaware, prominent Democrats such as Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) could enter the race to take over for Carper. She already represents the entire state as the at-large representative and she is a woman of color.
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Ahead of the 2024 Senate showdown, Democrats are staring down a map in which they will have to defend 23 seats, including three held by Democratic-aligned independent senators. Republicans only need to defend 11.