Rep. José Serrano (D-NY), who has represented the Bronx in the House of Representatives since 1990, announced Monday that he was “living with Parkinson’s disease” and would not seek re-election.
“Today, I am announcing that I am living with Parkinson’s disease,” Serrano wrote in a press release. “After my diagnosis, I initially planned to continue my work representing the people of the South Bronx far into the future – a responsibility that brings me great joy. Although this disease has not affected my work in Congress, over the last few months I’ve come to the realization that Parkinson’s will eventually take a toll, and that I cannot predict its rate of advancement.”
“Because of this uncertainty, I do not intend to seek re-election in 2020. I do intend to serve the remainder of my term in the 116th Congress.”
Long a voice on the left of the House Democratic caucus, Serrano joined dozens of his colleagues in 2017 in skipping President Donald Trump’s inauguration, writing on Instagram at the time that he could not “celebrate the inauguration of a man who has no regard for my constituents. #Bronx“
This is a principled decision. I have had several relatives with Parkinson’s, including my brother who lived with it for 30 years and was not too much disabled with it for most of that time. But the congressman is right–the progress of the disease cannot be predicted.
I hope he enjoys a long and happy retirement.
Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) is also not running for re-election.
That’s sad. All of the news today is sad or distressing. I’ think I’ll sign off and watch Casablanca.
I join you in wishing him well.
On the other hand, he has served since 1990. He is 75 years old. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. As I look back on his career (I am not a constituent),when he got elected to Herman Badillo’s seat, he was viewed as a great hope for the PR community. His biggest moment that I can recall was his questioning of Mark McGwire during the congressional hearings on PEDs in Major League Baseball. A somewhat adulatory and only reluctantly critical question which was really a short speech.
I do not know if his son will run for his seat, but he has a son who is (I believe) an elected State legislator. So, I will wonder if that is part of his consideration, too.
Councilman Richie Torres would be an excellent candidate. He’s done yeoman work in the council and bridges the gap between the AOC wing and workaday mainstream Democrats.