Graves won’t run for reelection, ending speculation in Louisiana

Rep. Garret Graves said Friday he will not run for reelection — ending months of questions about his political future after redistricting scrambled Louisiana's congressional map.

Graves (R-La.), in a statement, said that “it is clear that running for Congress this year does not make sense.”

The decision comes as Graves, a close ally of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, was staring down two difficult choices: He could either have run in his radically redrawn district, which now favors President Joe Biden by 20 points, or run against one of his fellow incumbent House Republicans in a state whose delegation is stacked with members of leadership.

"It is evident that a run in any temporary district will cause actual permanent damage to Louisiana’s great representation in Congress. Campaigning in any of these districts now is not fair to any of the Louisianians who will inevitably be tossed into yet another district next year,” he added.

The most likely intraparty challenge Republicans feared was a run against Rep. Julia Letlow (R-La.), even though the two have a close working relationship.

In May, the Supreme Court put the effort to redraw Louisiana’s congressional districts for a second time since the last election on ice, clearing the way for a map that includes two majority-Black districts.

Congressional Republicans, including fellow Louisianan Speaker Mike Johnson, had nudged him against challenging a fellow Republican and instead urged him to run for the Sixth District, even though its new makeup would give him an uphill battle. Graves had indicated he intended to run for Congress again but wasn’t sure in which district.

"I have encouraged Garret to think hard about running in that newly drawn district. … I think Garret could win it, and I'm really hopeful he'll run in that district,” Johnson said in a recent Louisiana radio interview.