Sen. Trent Lott of Mississippi, the Senate’s No. 2 Republican, plans to resign his seat by the end of the year.
No reason for Lott’s resignation was given, but according to a congressional official, there is nothing amiss with Lott’s health. The senator has “other opportunities” he plans to pursue, the official said, without elaborating. Lott was re-elected to a fourth Senate term in 2006.
After the 2006 elections, when Democrats recaptured the Senate, Lott was put in charge of lining up and counting Republican votes as whip, the No. 2 job behind minority leader Mitch McConnell.
His 2006 comeback was an apt outlet for the Mississippian’s talents. He was the rare majority leader who seemed to relish the vote- wrangling duties that some of his predecessors loathed.
Lott becomes the sixth Senate Republican this year to announce retirement. Democrats effectively hold a 51-49 majority in the chamber, including two independents who align themselves with Democrats.
His retirement means that Republicans will have to defend 23 seats in next year’s election, while Democrats have only 12 seats at stake.
Mississippi’s Gov. Haley Barbour, a Republican, will appoint Lott’s temporary replacement, who will serve until the 2008 elections, when voters will elect someone to serve out the balance of Lott’s term, which runs through 2012.
