Ark. Blue Dog Mike Ross Won't Seek Reelection

Democrat Mike Ross won’t seek a seventh term in Congress, the Arkansas rep said today. A leader of the Blue Dog Coalition of fiscally conservative Democrats, Ross said he’s considering running for governor in his home state, and another congressional term would conflict with a possible 2014 campaign. Such a move “wouldn't be fair to the people who elected me to Congress and it wouldn't be fair to my supporters in a race for governor,” he said.

Ross opposed President Obama’s health care law and was one of a few Dems to vote to repeal it, USA Today notes. “I believe it is time for me to begin a new chapter in my life by spending more time with my family and exploring new opportunities here at home in Arkansas,” says Ross, the state’s only House Democrat. (More Mike Ross stories.)