Michigan US Rep. Brenda Lawrence won’t seek 2022 reelection

U.S. Representative Brenda Lawrence, D-Southfield, plans to retire from Congress at the end of her term, becoming the 25th House Democrat to decide against seeking reelection in 2022, she announced Tuesday.

“This year marks my 30th year in elected public service, and I’ve had the good fortune of serving Michiganders on the local and national level,” she announced on Twitter.

“After reflecting on my journey & having conversations with my family, I’m announcing that I will not be seeking re-election to Congress,” Lawrence said.

The 67-year-old former Southfield mayor is the only Black lawmaker representing Michigan in Congress and the only Michigan Democrat on the powerful House Appropriations Committee.

Lawrence said it's important to elect officials who look like the communities they represent, especially after new redistricting maps were approved last week. Michigan's electoral districts were redrawn, and Lawrence's district was eliminated as the result of population changes and the state's redistricting process.

In the new maps, Lawrence's home base of Southfield was drawn into the 12th Congressional District, which is currently represented by Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn.

Lawrence has been in the U.S. House since 2015, representing a district that includes parts of Detroit, Hamtramck, the Grosse Pointe communities, Farmington Hills and Pontiac.

Being around more for her family was a major consideration for Lawrence, a grandmother whose last-living sister died last month.

Lawrence’s announcement came on the same day that Democratic Representative Bobby Rush of Illinois formally announced he won’t seek a 16th term in the U.S. House.

Rush is the 24th House Democrat to announce that they will not run for reelection this year. Eleven House Republicans have said they won’t seek reelection this fall, when the GOP is looking to win control of the chamber.