After more than three decades in Congress, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) is calling it quits, bowing to the generational tide that has begun sweeping out the Democratic Party’s elder statesmen.
Nadler, who has been a fixture of Manhattan politics since the 1980s and a national lightning rod during the Trump years, announced that he will not seek reelection in 2026. His departure not only closes the book on a 34-year congressional career but also sets off a high-stakes scramble for one of the most coveted Democratic seats in the country.
At 78, Nadler framed his decision as an acknowledgment that the party needs younger blood. “Watching the Biden thing really said something about the necessity for generational change in the party,” Nadler said, in a pointed nod to his party’s aging leadership. He admitted that his own hold on the Judiciary Committee had already been eclipsed by younger colleagues, and at home in Manhattan, a 26-year-old challenger was already circling.
For Nadler, the arc of his career has mirrored the leftward pull of the Democratic Party. The son of a chicken farmer, educated at Columbia, he emerged with a band of reformist “West Side Kids” to reshape Manhattan politics in the Vietnam era. Over the years, he became a constant in liberal policymaking: defending 9/11 survivors, reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act, curbing surveillance powers, and helping codify same-sex marriage. His trademark suspenders, spectacles, and even the occasional Zabar’s grocery bag became part of his public persona.
But his national fame came during the Trump presidency. Nadler and Trump had clashed for decades over real estate projects in Manhattan, and that animosity exploded when Nadler, as chair of the House Judiciary Committee, became one of the principal architects of Trump’s impeachment in 2019.
His uncompromising approach thrilled the Democratic base but irritated Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who often turned instead to Adam Schiff to choreograph the party’s messaging. Trump, for his part, dismissed him as “one of the most egregious hacks in contemporary politics.”
Now, as Nadler prepares to leave, he warns that Trump’s return to power represents “the most severe threat we’ve had to our system of government since the Civil War.” His views on foreign policy have also shifted sharply. Long regarded as one of Israel’s staunchest Democratic allies, Nadler now concedes he can no longer defend Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. For the first time, he says he will back efforts in Congress to block the transfer of offensive weapons to Israel — while continuing to support defensive systems like Iron Dome.
The question of succession looms large. Nadler declined to name a favorite, but sources suggest he will back Micah Lasher, a former aide who now serves in the New York State Assembly. Whoever wins, they will inherit a district that stretches from Union Square through Central Park — a seat thick with Fortune 500 headquarters, cultural landmarks, and one of the wealthiest donor bases in America.
For Nadler, the curtain falls with both a sense of accomplishment and melancholy. He leaves as the longest-serving Jewish member of the House, a product of Manhattan’s reformist tradition, and a man who wielded immense power in his time but often found himself at odds with his own leadership. “Much of the evolution of our country is broadening the definition of what [equality] meant,” he said. “And I like to think I played a part.”
