Politics

Dick Durbin Announces He Will Not Run for Reelection, Setting Off Scramble for Rare Open U.S. Senate Seat

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin announced Wednesday he will not seek a sixth term in the U.S. Senate, setting off a scramble for a rare open seat that will reshape Illinois politics.

Durbin, 80, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, will end his political career after serving 14 years in the U.S. House of Representatives and 30 years in the Senate. Durbin’s announcement was first reported by WBEZ and the New York Times.

In a video posted to social media, Durbin said he loved being a senator and struggled with whether to retire.

“But in my heart, I know it’s time to pass the torch,” said Durbin, who would have been 88 at the end of his next term in office. He will leave office in 2027.

Several prominent Illinois Democrats have quietly been preparing for Durbin’s retirement, including U.S. Reps. Lauren Underwood, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton.

Durbin, a native of East St. Louis, is likely the last Democrat to be elected to the Senate with roots outside the Chicago area. While the city and surrounding suburbs have grown more reliably Democratic, Republican politicians have cemented their hold on central and southern Illinois.

While Illinois Democrats rushed to release statements praising Durbin for his 44-year political career, Illinois Republican Party Chair Kathy Salvi signaled the party will attempt to win back a Senate seat 10 years after former U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, the last Illinois Republican to serve in the Senate, lost his bid for re-election. Republicans have been locked out of statewide office since 2019.

“Illinois families have a long-overdue chance to turn the page and elect a leader who will fight for lower taxes, less government spending, true support for Israel and our national and economic security,” Salvi said.

U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood’s political director Jake Ford said in a statement that Durbin’s retirement was “long overdue.”

“Voters are tired of out-of-touch liberal policies that have failed working families, and prioritized illegal immigrants and far-left ideological agendas over hard working American taxpayers,” Ford said.

Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth, in a statement reacting to the decision, recalled first meeting Durbin weeks following her Black Hawk helicopter being shot down. Duckworth credited Durbin’s encouragement and mentorship for her serving in the U.S. Senate.

“It has been the honor of a lifetime to get to work alongside a leader who embodies what it means to be a true public servant,” Duckworth said in a statement. “Dick Durbin is, and will always be, a giant of the United States Senate. He has dedicated his life to making our state—as well as our nation—stronger, and we are all better for it.”

Gov. JB Pritzker praised Durbin for “working tirelessly” to improve the lives of Illinois residents while serving as a “clear voice for truth, equality and justice.”

“His legacy is defined not just by the legislation he passed, but by the undeniable positive impact his character and moral leadership has had on the nation,” Pritzker said.

Durbin’s retirement will also reshape the national Democratic Party, by creating an opening in the Senate’s leadership and ending the career of one of the most prominent champions of working across the aisle.

During his Senate career, Durbin worked to pass protections for undocumented immigrants brought to the United States illegally as children, a group that came to be known as Dreamers. Durbin led several failed efforts to overhaul immigration laws that would have offered those immigrants a path to citizenship.

A prominent critic of former President George W. Bush's war in Iraq, Durbin also worked with President Donald Trump during his first term to reform the federal criminal justice system, leading to the early release of 40,000 people, many convicted of drug offenses.

Durbin led the Senate Judiciary Committee between 2021 and 2025, confirming 235 judges nominated by former President Joe Biden, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

During his House career, Durbin became a leading proponent of efforts to ban smoking in public places, starting with airlines. That law was signed by President Ronald Reagan, a Republican, in a sign of the significant political shifts Durbin has seen during his career.

WTTW News reporter Eunice Alpasan contributed. 

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