Eric Cantor Announces He’s Resigining from Congress Early

Hours after House Majority Leader Eric Cantor resigned his leadership position, he announced that starting August 18th, he would no longer be a member of Congress.

In light of the fact that the 14-year GOP incumbent had lost his own party’s primary to dark horse candidate David Brat, Cantor told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that he was resigning early in order to give his successor, whomever it may be, automatic seniority. “That will help the interests of my constituents (because) he can be there in that consequential lame-duck session,” he said, adding that he asked the governor to designate the November 4th election a “special election” in his district so his successor can begin working immediately, rather than in January. And of course, he’s pulling for Brat to win over his Democrat opponent, Jack Trammell: “I hope he will win,” he said.

UVA professor of politics Larry Sabato called Cantor’s move a “generous gesture,” but speculated that his early resignation may have been prompted by the siren call of lobbying offers:

“It’s highly probable that he has a very lucrative deal in the works for his post-Congress life, and he’s eager to get started,” Sabato said.

“The Republicans are nearly guaranteed to retain control of the House of Representatives after November, and a former majority leader with good ties to most of his colleagues is a very valuable commodity.”

[Times-Dispatch]
[Image via Congressman Eric Cantor/Flickr]

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