Republican Reverses Course on Retiring: 'Country Is Too Much in Trouble'

Representative Victoria Spartz is reversing her retirement decision and running for re-election in Indiana's 5th Congressional District.

"The country is too much in trouble," the Republican told Politico about her decision on Monday. "I will issue statement shortly."

Spartz said she would file paperwork for her candidacy later this week. The official filing period opened last month and will close on Friday. Indiana's primary elections will be held on May 7.

"Deciding where your duty lies—family, work, or country, is never an easy task. Earlier last year, I decided to take some time off from running for public office to recharge and spend more time in Indiana with my family," she said in a Monday statement. "However, looking where we are today, and urged by many of my constituents, I do not believe I would be able to deliver this Congress, with the current failed leadership in Washington, D.C., on the important issues for our nation that I have worked very hard on."

The congresswoman first announced that she would not run for re-election or any other office during the 2024 election cycle in February of last year, but hinted in December that she would walk back on that decision. In an email to IndyStar, the Republican said that she was reconsidering a re-election bid after House Speaker Mike Johnson won the gavel.

At least eight Republicans have already filed to run for Spartz's seat.

Spartz was first elected to the House in 2020 after Republican Representative Susan Brooks announced she would not run for re-election. The race was projected to be a "toss up" by the Cook Political Report. Spartz defeated her Democratic opponent by four percent. She was re-elected with 60 percent of the vote in 2022.

Spartz had initially cited her children for her decision to retire from Congress, saying in a February statement that while she had "won a lot of tough battles for the people" and while she planned to do so for the rest of her term, "being a working mom is tough and I need to spend more time with my two high school girls back home, so I will not run for any office in 2024."

Newsweek reached out to Spartz via email for comment.

Spartz notably voted "present" multiple times during Kevin McCarthy's speakership fight after initially supporting him for the gavel. Her support, or lack there of, continued to sour as she called him a "weak speaker" in September.

After McCarthy pushed back on those criticisms and said Spartz wouldn't retire if she was as "concerned" as she suggested, the Indiana Republican said she wished the then-speaker "would work as hard at governing our country as he does at collecting checks but his wish might come true."

The first Ukrainian-born lawmaker to be elected to Congress also drew rare rebuke for fiercely criticizing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky amid the war in her home country.

"As someone who grew up under tyranny, I understand the significance of these challenging times for our Republic, and if my fellow Hoosiers and God decide, I will be honored to continue fighting for them," she said on Friday. "We must carry on the sacrifice of countless Americans for our liberties and keep the American dream alive for our children."