WASHINGTON — Eleanor Holmes Norton, the nonvoting delegate representing Washington, D.C. in the House, announced on Wednesday that she intends to run for another congressional term, as reported by NBC News.
A short while later, her office walked back the remarks.
It was the second time that’s happened this month.
Speaking to NBC News on Wednesday, Norton said, “Yeah, I’m gonna run for re-election.”
A spokesperson for Norton later told Axios that “no decision has been made” about seeking another term.
Norton’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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The conflicting responses from Norton and her staff echo a similar proclamation earlier this month.
On June 10, Norton confirmed her re-election intentions to NBC News, stating confidently, “I’m going to run.” Addressing her critics who questioned her decision to seek another term, she responded, “I don’t know why anybody would even ask me.”
Later the same day, a statement from Norton’s office clarified that while she expresses a desire to run again, she is currently “in conversations with her family, friends, and closest advisors to decide what’s best.”
The questions over Norton’s future come at a pivotal moment on two fronts. The Republican-led Congress is seeking to impose its will on Washington by repealing local laws on policing and voting, and some city leaders have questioned whether Norton is the right person to lead the pushback. Meanwhile, Democrats are in the midst of a reckoning over age and power after President Joe Biden’s ill-fated attempt to run for re-election last year and the deaths of three House Democrats in office this year.
At 88, Norton is one of the oldest members of Congress.
A similar miscommunication over re-election plans took place with Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, who at the time was then the longest-serving senator, and her staff after a statement announced her retirement. Feinstein served in the Senate until she died in 2023 at age 90.
Norton has served in the House since 1991. Before she was elected to Congress, President Jimmy Carter appointed her as the first woman to chair the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in 1977.
Sahil Kapur reported from Washington, Zoë Richards from New York.
