Republican Rep. Ken Buck announced Tuesday that he will leave the House on March 22, moving up his existing retirement plans.
“I will depart Congress at the end of next week,” the conservative Colorado Republican said in a statement. “I look forward to staying involved in our political process, as well as spending more time in Colorado and with my family.”
Buck’s decision will leave Republicans with just 218 seats in the chamber, compared with Democrats’ 213. That means Republicans still can only afford to lose two votes on any bill with united Democratic opposition.
There’s already a competitive primary to replace Buck in the red seat. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) jumped into that race and moved across the state after she narrowly won reelection by just several hundred votes in 2022.
