D.C.’s Eleanor Holmes Norton, oldest member of Congress at 88, says she’s not going anywhere

“This is not 1990 anymore. Seniority is not the way out of Trumpism,” says Democratic strategist Joel Payne.

As the Democratic Party continues to navigate its brand identity with the voting public following its disappointing loss in the 2024 elections—losing the White House and Congress—many are calling for aging party members to step aside and make room for younger, more effective voices in a political era being dominated by President Donald Trump.

Despite those calls, U.S. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, who has represented Washington, D.C., in Congress for nearly 35 years, recently said she isn’t going anywhere.

When asked if she is running for re-election in next year’s midterms, Norton, the oldest member of Congress at 88, told Axios, “Of course.” The outlet also asked the octogenarian congresswoman about calls for her to embrace a generational change for her influential seat, to which she said, “I say that my seniority is what is very important, and I am not going to step aside.”

Norton, who was first elected to Congress in 1990, is considered a legend and hometown hero for D.C. residents. Over the years, she has consistently used her office to champion D.C. statehood. As a federal district and not a U.S. state, D.C. does not have a voting member of Congress despite its 700,000 residents being federal taxpayers.

Norton has built her political career advocating for statehood and the right for D.C. to govern itself without federal overreach. However, in recent years, reports of fellow Democrats noting her visible decline have raised alarm about her fitness to continue serving in Congress. Last week, Norton made her first public appearance since President Trump declared a “crime emergency” in the nation’s capital, resulting in the deployment of the National Guard and a surge of federal law enforcement officers on D.C. streets.

Photos and videos of Norton’s appearance at a rally showed the 88-year-old politician holding onto the arm of one of her staffers while she walked.

Despite Illinois Congressman Danny Davis and New York Congressman Jerry Nadler announcing their retirements, other members in their 80s plan to run for reelection.

“I don’t know anybody who doesn’t have deep respect for what Ms. Holmes Norton has accomplished in her career, same for the other elder statespersons in the Democratic caucus,” Democratic strategist Joel Payne told theGrio. However, he added, “I think the best way that a lot of these folks can lead is to follow the lead of…Democrats who’ve decided that now is the time to start to step aside and to make way for a new generation of leadership.”

Payne, a former Hill staffer, said pointedly, “This is not 1990 anymore. Seniority is not the way out of Trumpism.”

The Democratic insider noted that there are consequences to elder members of Congress hanging onto their seats, perhaps for too long. He pointed to the fact that three Democrats have died while serving in office. The absence of those members left Democrats without critical votes, said Payne.

“That small of a margin could have impacted the unpopular elements of the Trump agenda,” he said.

Payne also recalled the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in office. Ginsburg rebuffed calls to retire and have President Barack Obama nominate her successor before he left office. The death of Ginsburg, who died of pancreatic cancer, gave Trump a critical nomination that solidified the Supreme Court’s conservative majority.

“Nobody wants to be disrespectful or wants to ignore the service of folks like Miss Holmes Norton,” said Payne. He added, “I think there’s also a desire that those folks can, on their own, come to the conclusion that it’s OK to step aside, because they’ve done a great job fostering a generation of folks that have learned at their knee and that are excited to take the baton from them.”