Sen. Jeanne Shaheen announces she won't run for re-election

U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (Courtesy photo)

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen announced on Wednesday she will not seek reelection in 2026.

"I ran for public office to make a difference for the people of New Hampshire. That purpose has never, and will never, change," Senator Shaheen said in a video. "But today, after careful consideration, I'm announcing that I have made the difficult decision not to seek reelection to the Senate in 2026. It's just time."

Shaheen, 78, became the first woman elected Governor in New Hampshire history in 1996, and the first Democrat elected as Governor in 16 years. In 2008, she became the first woman in American history to be elected both Governor and U.S. Senator. It was the first time New Hampshire ever sent a woman to the U.S. Senate, and the first Democrat in more than 30 years. Now, as Ranking Member, she is the first woman to lead either party on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

A former teacher and small business owner, who also served in the New Hampshire State Senate, Shaheen passed the largest expansion of public kindergarten as well as historic investments in public schools, job training and the state University System. Shaheen established a new health insurance program for kids and cracked down on predatory junk health insurance plans, leading New Hampshire to one of highest rates of individuals with health insurance coverage in America.

She also expanded the rights of women and the LGBTQ community, with repeals of a century-old abortion ban and a ban on LGBT parents fostering or adopting children, as well as new bipartisan legislation that expanded insurance coverage for contraception and strengthened equal pay protections.