Updated Jan 25, 2026 - Politics & Policy

Eleanor Holmes Norton ends reelection campaign

A woman in a dark outfit and glasses looks back while a man in a blue jacket and black face mask moves away in a wood-paneled room with nameplates on the desk. — D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton is escorted by a staffer into a House Oversight Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 18, 2025. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) is terminating her reelection campaign after months of speculation that she would retire from Congress rather than seek reelection, according to a new campaign filing.

Why it matters: The 88-year-old non-voting delegate has been subject to an intense pressure campaign from both colleagues in Congress and allies in Washington, D.C., to step down.

She has repeatedly maintained over the last year that she is running for reelection despite her age and concerns about her cognitive state, with her office initially walking those statements back.
Norton said as recently as mid-January that she planned to run for reelection despite a crowded field of well-funded candidates running in the Democratic primary.
The filing was first reported by NOTUS.

Driving the news: Norton's principal campaign committee, Citizens for Eleanor Holmes Norton, filed a termination report with the Federal Election Commission on Sunday.

The report showed her campaign raised a paltry $7.50 between Jan. 1 and Jan. 25, bringing in a total of just under $20,000 for the cycle despite spending nearly $117,000.
The committee is also $90,000 in debt, according to the filing. A Norton spokesperson did not immediately provide a comment for this story.

State of play: Norton was facing a growing field of credible challengers, including D.C. Council members Robert White and Brooke Pinto, former DNC official Kinney Zalesne and D.C. Board of Education member Jacque Patterson.

Pinto, 33, announced earlier this month she raised $830,000, while Zalesne, 59, reported raising $435,000 between July and September of last year.
Trent Holbrook, 40, a former senior legislative counsel for Norton, became the latest to launch a campaign for the seat earlier this month.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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Eleanor Holmes Norton ends reelection campaign

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