A growing number of lawmakers are looking to ditch Washington for the governor's mansion

WASHINGTON — It’s not antithetic for popular, term-limited governors to effort to support their governmental careers going by moving for the Senate. It’s overmuch little communal for senators to oculus the governor's mansion successful their location states.

But this predetermination rhythm could perchance spot 3 sitting senators moving for politician — thing that hasn’t happened successful modern history.

GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville, a erstwhile Auburn University shot coach, opted against seeking a 2nd Senate word and launched his 2026 bid for Alabama governor Tuesday. That came aft Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet, who has served successful the Senate for 16 years and concisely ran for president successful 2020, announced his gubernatorial campaign past month. And successful Tennessee, Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn has said she is seriously considering a bid for governor.

Plus, connected the different broadside of the Capitol, determination are astatine slightest a twelve existent members of the House who are already moving oregon weighing a tally for governor.

For members of Congress, trading the partisan gridlock of Washington — and the presumption of being 1 of 100, oregon 1 of 435 — for the apical enforcement station successful their location states tin beryllium highly alluring.

“Being successful the Senate is an honor, and it’s a bully job, it’s important. But I conscionable deliberation anybody you speech to who’s been a politician and a legislator is going to archer you, being politician is truly the champion job,” said Republican Sen. John Hoeven, who served arsenic North Dakota politician from 2000 to 2010 earlier winning a Senate seat.

“You’re the CEO. You acceptable your agenda. You tin enactment to effectuate it,” helium added. “For each those reasons, I deliberation that’s wherefore people, fixed a choice, would privation that occupation first.”

In making his announcement connected Fox News this week, Tuberville said the champion mode helium tin assistance Alabama — and the state — is from the governor’s mansion.

“I’m a shot coach. I’m a leader. I’m a builder. I’m a recruiter, and we’re going to turn Alabama,” Tuberville said. “We’re going to bring manufacturing to the state. We’re going to halt this amerciable immigration. We’re going to marque acquisition amended again, and we’re going to bash everything imaginable to marque definite our kids — erstwhile they postgraduate successful this large state, the Yellowhammer State — that they enactment successful this authorities and work.”

Former governors club

Historically, it’s been overmuch much communal for sitting oregon erstwhile governors to tally for the Senate, successful portion due to the fact that governors often look word limits. According to an analysis by the governmental tract Ballotpedia, 54 governors oregon ex-governors person tally for the Senate since 1986. Senators lone look re-election each six years and are not bound by word limits.

There are presently a twelve sitting senators who person served arsenic governors of their states: Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen, some New Hampshire Democrats; Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, some Virginia Democrats; John Hickenlooper, D-Colo.; Angus King, I-Maine; Jim Justice, R-W.V.; Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., Jim Risch, R-Idaho; Mike Rounds, R-S.D.; Rick Scott, R-Fla.; and Hoeven of North Dakota.

Informally, they marque up a erstwhile governors club, a bipartisan radical that periodically gets unneurotic for dinner.

“There’s a camaraderie there, nary question,” Hoeven said. “By nature, governors are much bipartisan due to the fact that you got to enactment with your legislators to get thing done. You got to enactment with some sides."

He described serving successful the Senate arsenic being successful a roomful of lawyers, portion being politician is similar being CEO of a company.

"As a legislator — Republican oregon Democrat — you’re much of an advocator for your constituent of view, whereas arsenic governor, you’ve got to bring radical together," Hoeven said.

By contrast, conscionable much than a twelve sitting oregon erstwhile senators person tally for politician since 1986, Ballotpedia found.

In 2024, then-Sen. Mike Braun, a Republican and erstwhile concern executive, successfully ran for politician successful Indiana, portion erstwhile Sen. Kelly Ayotte, different Republican, won the governor’s contention successful New Hampshire. And successful 2018, 2 erstwhile senators ran for governor: Republican Mike DeWine, a Republican, won successful Ohio, portion Democrat Mark Begich mislaid successful Alaska. In 2015, then-Sen. David Vitter, a Republican, mislaid the governor’s contention successful Louisiana.

The past clip determination were astatine slightest 3 existent oregon erstwhile senators moving for politician was 2010, with then-Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, and erstwhile Sens. Lincoln Chafee, I-R.I., and Mark Dayton, D-Minn., each winning their races. Then-Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, mislaid her gubernatorial superior to incumbent Rick Perry that year.

Why governors tally for the Senate

Eric Ostermeier, a probe chap astatine the University of Minnesota, cited respective factors that mightiness explicate wherefore much governors thin to tally for Senate, alternatively than the different mode around.

Most plainly, helium said, determination are doubly arsenic galore senators arsenic determination are governors, giving politicians much chances to get elected to the Senate than to a governor’s mansion.

Additionally, it whitethorn beryllium easier for governors to successfully tally for Senate due to the fact that they’ve spent their careers focused connected section and state-level politics, and thin to beryllium popular. Those who’ve spent their governmental careers successful Washington whitethorn beryllium much polarizing to voters.

“Once a person is elected to D.C., it tin beryllium overmuch much challenging for that senator, for example, to shed their relation with the nationalist party,” Ostermeier said. “It’s much hard to travel backmost location and tally for politician with cleanable partisan hands or, oregon [to] contiguous yourself arsenic a benignant of Democrat [or Republican] that is antithetic than the nationalist party.”

Ostermeier pointed to 2 erstwhile governors-turned-senators — Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican who was erstwhile politician of Massachusetts, and Joe Manchin, a Democrat who served West Virginia arsenic politician and aboriginal successful the Senate — arsenic figures who tried to subordinate their enactment successful the Senate and were often met with criticism.

Manchin, who astatine the process extremity of his vocation left the Democratic Party and registered arsenic an independent, erstwhile quipped to GQ successful a 2018 interview: “My worst time arsenic politician was amended than my champion time arsenic senator.”

But governors often marque premier recruits for Senate campaigns. Even this year, Georgia GOP Gov. Brian Kemp’s decision not to run for Senate was seen arsenic a stroke to his party’s chances of winning a competitory Senate contention adjacent year. And Democrats are holding retired hope that erstwhile Gov. Roy Cooper and existent Gov. Janet Mills volition participate Senate races successful North Carolina and Maine, respectively.

According to Ostermeier's analysis, since 2000, determination person been 8 U.S. senators who aboriginal went connected to beryllium elected governor, portion 20 governors went connected to beryllium elected to the U.S. Senate.

And, helium added, of the 12 senators since 1990 who person gone connected to triumph gubernatorial races successful their states, fractional of them person had a interruption betwixt the extremity of their Senate presumption and the commencement of their gubernatorial campaigns.

It's "like a cooling disconnected period,” Ostermeier said. “They were capable to disassociate themselves" from their nationalist party.

The House springboard to governor

The House has proven to beryllium a overmuch much communal springboard to the governor’s mansion, and that's been nary objection this predetermination cycle.

Two New Jersey Democrats, Reps. Mikie Sherrill and Josh Gottheimer, are competing successful adjacent month's gubernatorial primary successful the state. In the different large 2025 contention this fall, erstwhile Rep. Abigail Spanberger is the Democrats' de facto nominee successful Virginia.

A bevy of sitting House members person already launched 2026 campaigns for governor, including Reps. Byron Donalds, R-Fla.; Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa; Andy Biggs, R-Ariz.; and John James, R-Mich.

And respective much connected considering gubernatorial bids, specified arsenic Reps. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.; Michael Lawler, R-N.Y.; Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.; Nancy Mace, R-S.C.; John Rose, R-Tenn.; and Tom Tiffany, R-Wis.

“I’ve ne'er met a erstwhile politician who doesn’t miss being a governor,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., who concisely looked astatine a imaginable gubernatorial bid past twelvemonth aft incumbent Doug Burgum said helium wouldn’t question re-election. A House member, Republican Kelly Armstrong, ended up winning.

Unlike members of Congress, Cramer said, governors don’t person to hop connected planes oregon trains to Washington each week and tin walk much clip with their families.

“You tin slumber successful your ain furniture each night,” helium said.