After nearly 40 years in office, Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio will not run for reelection in 2022

Adam Duvernay, Register-Guard
·5 min read

EUGENE, Oregon - The man who has represented Lane County and much of southwestern Oregon in the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly 40 years will not seek reelection in 2022.

U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio announced Wednesday he will be leaving Congress when his term ends in 2023. DeFazio, a senior Democrat who chairs the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, is leaving at a time his party is expected to struggle with keeping control of the House and after surviving an unusually close reelection last year.

"I need a little more time for myself, for my health and well-being, for my wife, my family, and the things I love in Oregon," DeFazio, 74, said at a Zoom press conference Wednesday afternoon. "There's a lot to do; another year to go. I'll be 75 and a half when I finish this term, and it's time to pass the torch."

"The last year and a half has been a whirlwind, and I've gotten a lot of long-awaited goals done, along with all my past accomplishments, just in the last year."

2020 election: Rep. Peter DeFazio wins over Skarlatos in race for Oregon's 4th Congressional District

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Born in Massachusetts, DeFazio now lives in Springfield, Oregon. DeFazio was first elected to Congress in 1986.

Eugene Mayor Lucy Vinis said DeFazio will leave a "deep and broad legacy" in the local community. She highlighted several projects DeFazio helped fund for the Eugene area, including a recent $19 million grant to help transform Franklin Boulevard and make it more bike and walker-friendly.

"It is hard to imagine what this community would have been like without his service over the last 36 years," Vinis said. "He has been a champion for our transportation needs, for the rights of workers, he has held fast to building a community that offers people opportunity, that protects our environment, and that looks to a future of fairness and equity."

DeFazio has been involved in transportation issues since first being elected to Congress and established a reputation as a hard-nosed leader on those issues.

DeFazio was instrumental in the recent passage of a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that got bipartisan support in Congress. DeFazio shepherded the bill through the House, though the Senate removed key provisions before it was sent back for final passage.

Though DeFazio expressed disappointment some provisions were cut, such as one which would have required states spend new federal highway funding on maintenance backlogs before building new extensions, he praised the bill's passage as long overdue.

The infrastructure bill represents the largest single investment in transit in U.S. history.

DeFazio lead the Congressional investigation of Boeing in 2020, after airplanes made by the company crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing a total of 346 people. The investigation found Boeing production pressures, design flaws and other factors contributed to the crashes.

“Chairman Peter DeFazio is an absolute force for progress, whose 36 years of effective leadership in the House will leave a legacy that will benefit the Congress and Country for decades to come," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement. "For decades, the people of southwest Oregon have had an outstanding champion for jobs, clean energy and conservation. Our Democratic Caucus will miss a trusted voice and valued friend."

DeFazio was lauded Wednesday by conservation groups for work that began with funding west Eugene wetlands restoration and ended with the latest infrastructure bill, into which were written measures meant to mitigate climate change across the country.

DeFazio in Eugene: Buttigieg, DeFazio test drive electric LTD bus to promote transit infrastructure legislation

"We are all indebted to Chairman DeFazio for his leadership and congratulate him on his well-deserved retirement after a career of commitment to wild places, the wildlife that call them home and tireless work on behalf of public health and safety," President and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation Collin O’Mara said in a statement Wednesday.

DeFazio faced a tough reelection campaign in his reliably Democratic district last year.

Alek Skarlatos, a well-funded Republican newcomer who gained fame for his part in stopping a terrorist attack on a European train in 2015 and playing himself in a movie about the event, challenged him, but DeFazio won the election with 51.6% of the vote.

Campaign finances: Once a hero, Oregon congressional candidate Alek Skarlatos funds questioned

Skarlatos announced this year he plans to try claiming the seat again in 2022.

Asked if the campaign took a toll and impacted DeFazio's decision to retire, he said it was a challenge juggling his work as chairman while also flying back to campaign in a hard-fought race.

"It's tiring; to have to be chairman of a committee and have incredible national responsibilities and demands here, and then have the longest commute home to campaign," he told The Register-Guard.

From a political standpoint, DeFazio said he felt like it was also a good time to go and said he would endorse and work hard to help the next Democratic nominee succeed.

"Now my district is about five points better for a Democrat, so it's a time when I feel good that another Democrat can win," he said.

DeFazio is one of 19 Democrats not planning to run again for their seats in the House. He is the third House committee chair to announce plans not to seek reelection in 2022.

Contact reporter Adam Duvernay at aduvernay@registerguard.com. Follow on Twitter @DuvernayOR.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon's Rep. Peter DeFazio will not seek reelection to House in 2022

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