California Democrat Julia Brownley Won't Seek Re-Election This Cycle
The U.S. Representative has served since January 2013.
U.S. Representative Julia Brownley of California, a Democrat, has decided not to seek re-election in 2026. Her statement announcing her retirement can be found here. She becomes the 46th retirement from the U.S. House of Representatives this cycle, the 21st Democrat to do so, and the 20th leaving without running for another office.
Brownley, 73, has served California’s 26th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives since January 2013. The district is located on the South Coast, covering the majority of Ventura County as well as part of Los Angeles County.
As generational change has become a key factor in this cycle’s primaries, Brownley becomes the tenth Democrat over 70 to retire - after Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey (80), Danny Davis of Illinois (84), Lloyd Doggett of Texas (79), Dwight Evans of Pennsylvania (71), Steny Hoyer of Maryland (86), Jerry Nadler of New York (78), Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi of California (85), Jan Schakowsky of Illinois (81), and Nydia Velázquez of New York (72). For Republicans, Dan Newhouse of Washington (70) and Ralph Norman of South Carolina (72) are the only members in this demographic leaving.
Brownley and Pelosi are two of the three members of California’s 52-person delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives retiring this year. Eric Swalwell of the 14th District is leaving to run for Governor. The state also has one vacant seat following the unexpected death of Republican Doug LaMalfa earlier this week. Meanwhile, the Golden State will operate with new district lines following the passage of Prop 50 last year.
From 1994 to 2006, Brownley served on the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education. That included three terms as president. She then represented District 41 in the California State Assembly from December 2006 to November 2012.
In 2012, Brownley ran for the 26th District after 13-term Republican incumbent Elton Gallegly retired following changes to the district lines. She went on to flip the district with a 52.7-47.3 victory against Republican Tony Strickland. She was then narrowly re-elected in 2014. Since then, she has carried the district by double digits. She has served for seven terms in office.
During the 119th Congress, Brownley serves on the House Committees on Natural Resources; Transportation and Infrastructure; and Veterans’ Affairs. Furthermore, she is the Ranking Member on the Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Health.
Brownley becomes the seventh member departing the Natural Resources panel - following Democrats Jared Golden of Maine and Nydia Velázquez of New York as well as Republicans Mike Collins of Georgia, Harriet Hageman of Wyoming, Wesley Hunt of Texas, and Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin. Elsewhere, she’s the eighth member exiting the Transportation committee - after Democrats Jesús “Chuy” García of Illinois, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, Jerry Nadler of New York, and Chris Pappas of New Hampshire as well as Republicans Collins, Dusty Johnson of South Dakota, and Troy Nehls of Texas. And finally, she’s the fourth member leaving the Veterans Affair committee - joining Pappas as well as Republicans Morgan Luttrell of Texas and Nancy Mace of South Carolina.
In the hours after Brownley shared the news, term-limited State Assemblywoman Jacqui Irwin, a Democrat, entered the race to succeed her. Four Republicans previously filed paperwork to compete for the seat in the blanket primary - most notably 2024 runner-up Michael Kowlow. Given the partisan lean of the district, the Democratic candidate in the top two general election will likely become the next U.S. Representative here. While Irwin starts off as the favorite, she probably won’t be the only Democrat to enter the contest.
Under the current lines, Democrat Kamala Harris won California’s 26th Congressional District with a 55.2-42.0 finish against Republican Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election. That came as Harris was carrying her home state 58.5-38.3 in her ultimately unsuccessful national campaign. On the same ballot, Brownley was re-elected with a 56.1-43.9 victory against Koslow for her final term in office.
With the new lines, Harris would have carried the 26th District by a 56-41 margin against Trump.