Longtime Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin announced on Monday that he will not seek reelection in 2024, capping off a nearly four decade career in Congress.

What You Need To Know

  • Longtime Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin announced on Monday that he will not seek reelection in 2024

  • Cardin, 79, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986 after two decades of service in the Maryland House of Delegates

  • He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006, replacing retiring Democrat Paul Sarbanes, and has served in the upper chamber ever since

  • Cardin's announcement triggers what is likely to be a highly competitive primary to replace him in the blue-leaning state

"I am proud of all I have done for Maryland," Cardin, 79, said in a statement. "I have given my heart and soul to our great state, and I thank Marylanders for trusting me as your representative for all these years."

Cardin was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986 after two decades of service in the Maryland House of Delegates, where he served as the chamber's speaker from 1979 until he joined Congress in 1987. Cardin was elected to the House of Delegates while still attending the University of Maryland School of Law, and was picked as speaker at age 35, making him the youngest person at the time to serve in the role.

He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006, replacing retiring Democrat Paul Sarbanes, and has served in the upper chamber ever since. Cardin has held key roles on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Small Business Committee, the latter of which he currently chairs.

Cardin's announcement triggers what is likely to be a highly competitive primary to replace him in the blue-leaning state.

During his tenure in the Senate, Cardin has been a leader in health care, retirement security, the environment and fiscal issues. The senator has also been a leading advocate for clean water and the Chesapeake Bay, the nation’s largest estuary, which flows through his home state.

He helped write the Paycheck Protection Program that helped small businesses in Maryland and nationwide endure the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. He also created the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Advance Grant program to quickly get cash to small businesses in need.

His legislation to expand Medicare to include preventive benefits such as colorectal, prostate, mammogram, and osteoporosis screening was also enacted.

“I salute my friend and our state’s senior Senator Ben Cardin on his extraordinary public service to Maryland and our country,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said in a statement Monday. “It is a privilege to serve alongside him and in partnership every day for the people of our great state.”

Cardin also has worked in foreign affairs, supporting the integration of anti-corruption, transparency and respect for human rights into foreign policy. He chaired the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission.

Cardin counts among his achievements the passage of his legislation to increase the amount Americans can put into their 401(k) plans and IRAs, which was enacted in 2001.

As a state legislator and a member of Congress, Cardin has generally supported liberal views, emphasizing increased aid for education, tax relief for low-income people and protection of the environment.