Republican Who Voted to Impeach Trump Is Retiring

'4 down and 6 to go,' Trump says after Rep. Fred Upton decides not to run again
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 5, 2022 7:17 PM CDT
4th House Republican Who Voted to Impeach Is Retiring
Rep. Fred Upton is retiring after almost 36 years in office.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Another one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Donald Trump after the Capitol riot last year is calling it quits. Rep. Fred Upton, who was first elected to the House in 1986, announced his retirement Tuesday but said his decision not to seek a 19th term had more to do with redistricting in Michigan than anger from fellow Republicans, Politico reports. "My district was cut like Zorro—three different ways," Upton said. "So I’ve been here 36 years. When I first ran, I thought I’d be here 10."

Upton, who would have faced a GOP primary challenger endorsed by Trump, said the decision was "independent of what I did with Trump." Three other House Republicans who voted to impeach—Reps. Anthony Gonzalez, Adam Kinzinger, and John Katko—have already decided against running for re-election this year and the remaining six, including Rep. Liz Cheney, will be facing primary challenges, the Hill reports. "UPTON QUITS! 4 down and 6 to go. Others losing badly, who’s next?" Trump said in a statement.

Upton, 68, chaired the House Energy and Commerce Committee from 2011 through 2016. In his speech to the House Tuesday, he became emotional as he thanked his "salt-of-the-earth" constituents and noted that his parents were watching on C-SPAN, the AP reports. Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell, a fellow Michigander, spoke after Upton and praised him for his "civility" and bipartisan cooperation over the years. "Fred and I always managed to disagree without vitriolic rhetoric and mean-spirited language," she said. (More Fred Upton stories.)

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