NY DAILY NEWS — Democrats’ efforts to maintain a majority in the U.S. Senate after next year’s midterm election were thrown into further doubt Tuesday when Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota became the fifth senior member of the party to announce his retirement.
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Johnson, who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, said he would not seek a fourth term. He suffered a brain hemorrhage in 2006 and, despite extensive rehabilitation, relies on a wheelchair to travel the halls in Congress.
“I feel great, but I must be honest: I appreciate my right arm and right leg aren’t what they used to be, and my speech is not entirely there,” Johnson said at the University of South Dakota.
Two weeks ago, Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan said he would step down after his sixth term. Fellow Democrats John D. Rockefeller IV of West Virginia, Tom Harkin of Iowa and Frank R. Lautenberg of New Jersey also won’t seek reelection.
As a result, at least five of 21 Democratic Senate seats on the ballot in 2014 will not include an incumbent. Only two Republican senators have announced retirement plans: Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Mike Johanns of Nebraska.
