U.S. Senator Richard Burr is one of the big name Republicans not attending their party convention in Cleveland this week. Still, the Senior Senator from North Carolina made a stop in the city on Wednesday to address the state’s delegation. And he made a surprising announcement.
That announcement – the 2016 election will be Richard Burr’s last as a candidate.
Burr has served more than 20 years in Congress. First being elected as the U.S. Representative for north west North Carolina in the Republican wave of 1994. Ten years later he was elected to the U.S. Senate.
And with that longevity has come prominence, Burr currently chairs the powerful Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
Burr’s announcement comes at an odd time. He’s considered one of the Senate’s most vulnerable Republicans up for re-election. Speaking with the News and Observer after his remarks, Burr acknowledged this may hurt his re-election campaign but then added, "It helps me at home because I’ve got a bride who’s put up with it for 22 years and she would like to know that the light at the end of the tunnel is not a train."
If Burr does win in November his term would last thru 2022. His Democratic opponent is Deborah Ross.
Copyright 2016 WFAE
