Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, who withdrew his nomination to be President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general, said he won’t return to Congress next year.
“I’m still going to be in the fight, but it’s going to be from a new perch. I do not intend to join the 119th Congress,” Gaetz told conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Friday.
It wasn’t clear whether Gaetz, even if he wanted to, would have been able to rejoin Congress to serve the term he won earlier this month.
Gaetz resigned from Congress last Wednesday, the same day that Trump announced him as his pick to oversee the Justice Department. Gaetz’s resignation came as the House Ethics Committee was set to release a report on its investigation into alleged illicit drug use and sexual misconduct, which Gaetz has denied.
With Gaetz no longer a member, the committee was deadlocked this week on whether to release its findings.
Gaetz has options to continue his political career in Florida. Sen. Marco Rubio likely will be vacating his seat as Trump’s pick for secretary of state, giving Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis discretion to appoint a replacement to fill out the last two years of Rubio’s term. DeSantis himself is also term limited in 2026.
