Ken Buck cuts short his term in the House of Representatives, leaving Republicans with another member behind

Rep. Ken Buck, Republican of Colorado, announced Tuesday that he would leave Congress at the end of next week, shortening his final term in office, a move that will further reduce his party’s already slim majority.

The decision, which surprised Republican leaders in the House of Representatives, is the latest in a long line of losses for Speaker Mike Johnson and his party, which will control just 218 of the chamber’s 435 seats after Buck’s departure.

In a brief statement, Mr. Buck, a veteran conservative, thanked his constituents and said he hoped to remain involved in the political process while spending “more time with my family in Colorado.”

Last year, Mr. Buck said he would retire at the end of this term, citing his party’s election denialism and the refusal of many Republicans to condemn the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. His plans were considered unlikely to affect the balance of power in the House of Representatives, as Republicans would almost certainly retain his solidly conservative district in eastern Colorado.

And the loss of Mr. Buck, who has broken with his party on a number of key issues — including the recent ouster of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas — was hardly seen as costing the party a loyal voice .

But Buck’s decision to leave months before the end of his term on March 22, the same day as the deadline for Congress to pass a package of spending bills to avoid a partial government shutdown, is raising concerns yet more headaches for Republicans in the House of Representatives who have drifted away. from chaos to crisis for more than a year, leaving them with even less support to wield their slim majority.

Shortly after Mr. Buck’s announcement, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said a special election to fill his seat will be held on June 25, in line with an already scheduled primary for congressional elections in the state.

There will be several months between Mr. Buck’s departure and the swearing-in of a new, probably Republican, representative.

Republicans can currently afford only two party-line vote deviations, a margin that will not change with Buck’s departure. But his departure will leave the Republican majority even more precarious than it already is, and more vulnerable to unavoidable absences due to personal emergencies, illness, travel delays, and any other unforeseen event that would prevent a member from being present in the House of Representatives for votes . .

Mr. Buck’s abrupt departure could also disrupt the race for control of the House of Representatives.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, the Republican who represents a swing district in western Colorado, had already announced plans to switch districts and run for Buck’s seat in the more conservative eastern part of the state. Ms. Boebert won re-election in 2022 by fewer than 600 votes, and seeking Mr. Buck’s seat seemed an easier path to securing a third term.

But Mr. Buck’s early departure could complicate those plans. If Ms. Boebert tries to run in the special election to replace Mr. Buck and wins her party’s nomination and the race, she will have to resign her current seat, creating a new vacancy for Republicans that could not be filled before November fulfilled. Should she decide not to run in the special election — or lose the Republican primary — she would face a tough race against an incumbent candidate in November.

Colorado law regarding special elections stipulates that they may not be held within 90 days of a general election, meaning that if she were to vacate her seat, there would be no time for a special election to replace her before the November vote.