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Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) announced Friday helium plans to question a 3rd term, sending a question of alleviation done the Democratic Party amid worries that helium would discontinue and make a imaginable opening for Republicans.
Kaine said helium made the determination aft consulting for immoderate clip with his family, friends and Democratic colleagues — galore of whom were hoping Kaine would question reelection considering adjacent year’s pugnacious races for Democrats, but whom Kaine said appreciated helium needed clip to travel to a steadfast determination himself.
He said he’d been grappling with the determination but finds it “energizing” to question the authorities and service its people. Even those who don’t ballot for him, helium said, archer him “ ‘preciate ya.” Kaine added that the Senate is frustrating, but they bash get immoderate things done.
“Man, I’ve got much I wanna do," helium said.
Kaine volition beryllium seeking reelection nether a decidedly antithetic situation than successful his past race, erstwhile a Democrat was successful the enforcement mansion and his opponent, Corey Stewart, turned disconnected mean Virginians with hard-right positions and staunch enactment for Confederate statues. Kaine won by 16 points. He won by 6 successful 2012 against erstwhile Virginia politician and legislator George Allen.
Though Kaine is inactive considered well-positioned to support his seat, Republicans person been energized by Youngkin’s triumph successful 2021 implicit erstwhile politician Terry McAuliffe (D) by astir 2 percent points, and person been motivated to support the momentum going.
Whether the politician could beryllium a contender for the spot himself remains an unfastened question; Virginia governors cannot question consecutive terms. Youngkin’s ambitions person been nether a microscope, arsenic the politician has launched 2 political-action committees, met with megadonors and crisscrossed the authorities stumping for GOP gubernatorial candidates during the midterms. Youngkin has often deflected suggestions helium is eyeing a White House bid — but others haven’t ruled retired a Senate run.
A September University of Mary Washington Poll tested a Youngkin Senate candidacy successful a hypothetical matchup against Kaine, uncovering enactment for them was adjacent among Virginia voting-age adults.
In conscionable 10 years, Kaine has developed a estimation arsenic an honorable broker with galore Republicans — a argumentation wonk who much often strikes an optimistic enactment astir bipartisan get-alongs, and who has publically described a idiosyncratic ngo not to turn cynical astir dysfunction successful Congress. He’s been astatine the negotiating array connected immoderate of the astir consequential legislation, sometimes moving with bipartisan rump “gangs” connected authorities not initially approved of by Senate leaders.
That estimation has enactment him astatine the forefront of much challenging assignments successful the look of the Senate filibuster: He’s worked with chap Catholic Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) on protecting termination rights, contempt his idiosyncratic absorption to abortion, and helium helped pb the complaint connected Democrats’ large voting rights authorities contempt not serving connected the applicable committees, saying helium hoped to “change the trajectory” of his Senate spot antecedently occupied by segregationists.
A fluent Spanish-speaker who spent clip with Jesuit missionaries successful Honduras, Kaine has besides prioritized migration reform, making past successful 2013 arsenic the archetypal legislator to present a code wholly successful Spanish connected the Senate floor.
He sits connected the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wherever helium has relentlessly sought to rewrite the warfare resolutions utilized to commencement the Afghanistan and Iraq wars 2 decades ago.
Kaine has agelong been a governmental heavyweight successful Virginia and beyond. He served arsenic Hillary Clinton’s moving mate successful her 2016 statesmanlike campaign, a occupation Barack Obama archetypal vetted him for successful 2008 earlier asking him to service arsenic president of the Democratic National Committee.
Kaine, who archetypal roseate to prominence successful the authorities arsenic a civilian rights lawyer, began his governmental vocation successful Richmond, archetypal arsenic a metropolis assembly member, past mayor, climbing to go politician of Virginia. His dependable but affectional enactment successful the aftermath of the Virginia Tech wide shooting garnered wide recognition, an acquisition helium has said has informed his propulsion to grow weapon restrictions during his tenure successful the Senate.
Kaine, who besides served arsenic Virginia’s lieutenant politician nether chap Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), holds a grade from Harvard Law School, wherever helium met his wife, Anne Holton, the erstwhile Virginia caput of education.
Kaine has been nationalist astir the effects he’s experienced from agelong covid, and past year sponsored authorities aimed astatine backing probe connected the condition. He described the symptoms arsenic a persistent tingling sensation — arsenic if “all my nerves person had similar 5 cups of coffee,” arsenic helium described the feeling past twelvemonth — but has stressed the symptoms were not debilitating and did not forestall him from doing his work.
This communicative is processing and volition beryllium updated.
Paul Kane, Amy Gardner and Scott Clement contributed to this report.
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