Democratic Rep. Gene Green has represented Texas' 29th Congressional District since 1993, but says the time has come to step down.
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Green said he has devoted his life to public service, but is looking forward to "be more involved in the lives of our children and grandchildren."
The congressman said he will continue to serve the district until his term ends in 2018.
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Last week, Republican Congressman Ted Poe said he would not seek reelection in Texas' 2nd Congressional District.
Congressman Ted Poe won't seek reelection in 2018
Congressman Ted Poe won't seek reelection in 2018
Green's office released the congressman's complete statement:
"Serving as an elected official is one of the greatest honors our country can bestow on a person. I have been blessed and fortunate to serve almost 46 years in elected office. Since 1973, I have served as a Texas State Representative for 13 years, Texas State Senator for seven years and since 1993 as a member of the United States Congress. Our family has known politics and public service throughout their lives. My wife, Helen, has been a partner every step of the way for our 47 years of marriage.
The goal of every elected official should be to serve and help your constituency to have a better life for their families. I am proud of sponsoring events in our district such as having Immunization Day each year for the past 20 years to provide free vaccinations for children and Citizenship Day each year for the past 22 years to help legal residents to become citizens of our great country. We have also held Job Fairs twice a year to help people find employment and Paying for College Workshops to help students find the resources to allow them to afford to go to college. At home or in Washington my goal is to impact legislation for the benefit of our constituents. Serving on the Energy and Commerce Committee helped to put a Texas view on the expansion of Health Care access and expand job opportunities in our district.
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We have held many town hall meetings each year and have been accessible to people in our district. Our staff in Houston and Washington has been dedicated to helping our constituents with problems in many different areas such as Social Security, Veterans Affairs, and Immigration. I have been blessed to have such a dedicated staff to help me do the job of a Member of Congress.
I have been fortunate to have never lost an election since 1972 and I am confident that I still have the support of my constituents and would be successful if I ran for another term in Congress. However, I have decided that I will not be filing for re-election in 2018. I think that it is time for me to be more involved in the lives of our children and grandchildren. I have had to miss so many of their activities and after 26 years in Congress it is time to devote more time to my most important job of being a husband, father and grandfather.
I and our staff will continue to serve our district until our term is over at the end of 2018."
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