U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Weston, announced on his Facebook page this morning that he will resign from Congress Sept. 23.
Duffy wrote in his post his ninth child, who is due in October, has a heart condition.
“With much prayer, I have decided that this is the right time for me to take a break from public service in order to be the support my wife, baby and family need right now,” Duffy wrote. “It is not an easy decision – because I truly love being your Congressman – but it is the right decision for my family, which is my first love and responsibility.”
Duffy, a former reality TV star who went on to become the Ashland County DA, was elected to the House in 2010 as part of a GOP wave. He announced plans in 2009 to challenge longtime Dem Rep. Dave Obey in the sprawling 7th CD. That following spring, Obey announced he wouldn’t seek re-election, and Duffy beat then-state Sen. Julie Lassa, D-Stevens Point, for the seat.
Since then, Duffy has become a regular on Fox News and was seen as a possible statewide candidate in 2022.
His wife, Rachel Campos-Duffy, has also been a regular on Fox News as well as a conservative activist.
The office of Gov. Tony Evers said he plans to call a special election to fill the seat. His office was studying state law to follow the requirements under the statutes for doing so.
The district stretches from the St. Croix River in northwestern Wisconsin to the area east of Wausau and Rhinelander. It has become a deep red seat in recent years due to redistricting and a shift politically in northern Wisconsin. President Trump won the sprawling district by 20.3 points in 2016. Duffy has built one of the largest war chests in the congressional delegation with $2.2 million in the bank at the end of June.
In 2018, Duffy won re-election with 60.1 percent of the seat.
See the post.
