Rep. Bob Gibbs announced his retirement Wednesday, citing the state’s redistricting process as the reason for his decision. The Ohio Republican also faced a primary challenger backed by former President Donald Trump.
In a statement, Gibbs, who first represented Ohio’s 18th Congressional District and later its 7th District, pointed to “the circus redistricting has become in Ohio” as cause for his decision to leave Congress.
“These long, drawn-out processes, in which the Ohio Supreme Court can take weeks and months to deliberate while demanding responses and filings from litigants within days, is detrimental to the state and does not serve the people of Ohio,” he said.
“It is irresponsible to effectively confirm the congressional map for this election cycle seven days before voting begins, especially in the Seventh Congressional District where almost 90 percent of the electorate is new and nearly two thirds is an area primarily from another district, foreign to any expectations or connection to the current Seventh District,” Gibbs said.
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Since 2011, I’ve had the honor of serving the people of Ohio’s 18th, then 7th District. I helped reform federal water resources policy, made clean water utilities more affordable for low-income communities, cut taxes & red tape for millions of American families & businesses… pic.twitter.com/xABqVFGHjw
— Gibbs for Congress (@Bob_Gibbs) April 6, 2022
Ohio’s tumultuous redistricting process is underway, as the state Supreme Court has yet to weigh in on the latest district map after rejecting a Republican-drawn map as unfairly beneficial to the party. But the state is proceeding with its scheduled May 3 primary.
“This circus has provided me the opportunity to assess my future,” Gibbs said in the statement.
He also faced primary challenges from candidates such as former Trump aide Max Miller, although his statement did not name them.
Trump originally endorsed Miller to challenge Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, a Republican who voted to impeach Trump in the wake of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. Gonzalez, however, decided not to seek reelection, and the state’s redistricting process later left much of the district he represents to the one represented by Gibbs.
Miller entered the race for Gibbs’s district instead, and Trump backed him for that race despite Gibbs being closely aligned with him, including voting against certifying the results of the 2020 election and filing articles of impeachment against President Joe Biden.
But despite his support of Gibbs’s primary opponent Miller, Trump on Wednesday issued a statement praising the retiring lawmaker for “a wonderful and accomplished career.”
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“His retirement, after serving in Congress for more than a decade, should be celebrated by all,” Trump said. “He was a strong ally to me and MAGA, voting to support my America First agenda and fighting strongly against the Radical Left. Thank you for your service, Bob — a job well done!”
