Florida Democratic Rep. Murphy won't seek reelection

By Associated Press AP

PUBLISHED 2:23 PM ET Dec. 20, 2021

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy on Monday announced she will not seek reelection next year.

The Florida Democrat, a leader of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition and member of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, said she is retiring from Congress to spend more time with her family.

"Public service is not without personal sacrifice, and as a mom of two young children, my time away from them has been hard. For them. For me. And for our family," she said in a video statement.

Murphy, 43, was first elected in 2016, becoming the first Vietnamese American woman and second Vietnamese American in Congress, after defeating 12-term Republican John Mica in a central Florida district that includes part of Orlando.

Murphy was widely believed to be considering a challenge to U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio but said she would not seek the post when U.S. Rep. Val Demings, another Florida Democrat, launched her own bid earlier this year.

Before taking office, Murphy was a national security adviser at the Pentagon. She was born in Vietnam and came to the United States as an infant when her family fled the country.

In her statement, Murphy did not rule out another role in public service in the future.

“Now I still have a job to do and will work just as hard this next year as I have the last five,” she said. “And rest assured, after I leave office, I will continue to find ways that I can serve this great nation that has given so much to my family and me.”