Five more Republican representatives may join Ken Buck in resigning from the House of Representatives if they continue to be dissatisfied with the party’s nominee for the presidential election, Donald Trump.
On Tuesday, Buck, a Colorado congressman, suddenly resigned, leaving his seat vacant from next week and shrinking the Republican’s slim majority in the House to 218 to 213. Previously, he had announced his intention to retire from Congress at the end of his current term.
When asked by Axios whether he was coming under pressure from colleagues over his decision, Buck then hinted that more colleagues might resign, saying: “I think it’s the next three people that leave that they’re going to be worried about.”
Buck did not elaborate on who might be next to depart Congress, but there are a few Republicans who have publicly voiced negative opinions about Trump and could potentially be next out of the door.
One is David Valadao, but a spokesperson for the Congressman confirmed to Newsweek that he has no plans to resign and is actively running for reelection in the 22nd district.
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Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie backed former presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in his failed bid to become the Republican nominee.
In a January interview with Fox News he accused Trump of “bullying tactics” in securing endorsements from Republicans who are scared of opposing him.
Chip Roy, of Texas, has criticized Trump for issues at the U.S.-Mexico border. In November, he told CNN that Trump “failed to actually fully secure the border” amid concerns about a rising number of migrant encounters.
There appears to be no love lost between the pair as Trump too has spoken out against Roy, calling him a “RINO” (Republican in name only) on social media.
Larry Bucshon has also pilloried the former president. In August 2023, the Indiana Republican predicted Trump would not be the GOP nominee because of controversies around him. In October 2023 he said Trump should apologize for comments he made about migrants “poisoning the blood” of the country during a campaign rally. He also called Trump out for the Capitol riots in 2021, claiming he incited them.
California Republican David Valadao was one of the few Republicans who voted to impeach Trump in 2021 and has said he is not endorsing the former president in his reelection bid.
Meanwhile, Indiana Republican Greg Pence and Wisconsin Republican Mike Gallagher have both announced they will retire from Congress at the end of their terms. Gallagher did not join in efforts to disrupt the result of the 2020 election, however he twice voted against impeaching Trump. Like Buck, Pence and Gallagher may opt to resign sooner, leaving the House Republicans
Newsweek contacted representatives for Bucshon, Gallagher, Massie, Pence and Roy by email to comment on this story.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.