Rep. Janice Hahn won’t run for re-election to a “broken” Congress where there’s “virtually zero cooperation,” choosing instead to seek a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
The California Democrat, who first won her seat in a 2011 special election, announced her decision on Wednesday, saying she thinks she can do more to help people in the Los Angeles area from the local office.
“The problem is, Washington is broken. It’s increasingly mired in political gridlock, and there’s virtually zero cooperation between the two parties,” she said in a statement obtained by The Los Angeles Times. “That’s not the kind of government I grew up with.”
For Hahn, a 62-year-old Los Angeles city councilwoman, it’ll be a chance to serve on the same board where her father — whose name adorns the Hall of Administration building where the board meets — was a member for four decades, according to The Los Angeles Times.
It’s also a way to escape Democrats’ minority party status in the House, where the party’s members have little hope of advancing the legislation they favor in the coming years.
“My father developed a long history of delivering results for the folks he represented,” Hahn said. “This is a legacy I have fought hard to continue throughout my career.”