Many reasons are cited by Republican lawmakers in the US House of Representatives when deciding to retire, and one of them is a lack of trust in the party.

Republican Congressman from Wisconsin, Mike Gallagher, announced he would retire from Congress this month. He is one of 21 Republican party members who have decided to leave this year. However, some Republicans who previously announced their intention to leave have reconsidered. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise wants to emphasize this fact to Gallagher, hoping that the rising young star of the party may reconsider.

“I said ‘you know, it’s not too late for you yet,’ we joked about that,” Scalise recalled in an interview. “I’m not going to give up on convincing him.”

But these efforts have yet to yield results. Gallagher, 40, has not backed down from his decision.

The US House of Representatives consists of 435 seats, with Republicans holding 218 seats, Democrats holding 213 seats, and 4 seats vacant. When a lawmaker chooses to retire at the end of their term this year and not seek reelection, that seat will be decided in the general election in November. If a lawmaker departs before the end of their term, the district they represent will hold a special election to determine their replacement. Candidates from both parties can participate in the special election.

43 lawmakers, nearly evenly split between both parties, will not return to the House next year. While the number of retirees is on par with previous years, understanding which Republican members will retire and their early retirement timing reveals a more nuanced story.

5 out of the 21 retiring Republican members will resign before the end of their term. 4 committee chairmen of the Republican Party will depart.

8 lawmakers are leaving the House Committee on Commerce and Energy, and 8 state chairmen will also retire. 4 former members of the past leadership era have announced their departure, including former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, his deputy, Congressman Patrick T. McHenry, former deputy speaker Drew Ferguson, and McMorris Rodgers, who once held the position of chair of the Republican Party Conference.

A tumultuous year with a fragile majority is not necessarily the reason driving Republican members to leave seeking higher office or pursuing other opportunities outside Capitol Hill. But it has sent an alarming signal about party relations, according to observers.

The confrontational, mutually antagonistic attitude among Republican members after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was removed from office last year played a significant role in Representative Debbie Lesko’s decision to retire.

Lesko announced her retirement amid the three-week battle to elect Mike Johnson as House Speaker, citing a desire to spend more time with her family. But she hinted at deeper reasons when she commented, “Washington has broken down, it’s hard to get anything done.”

Greg Pence announced in January that he would not seek reelection. He emphasized that the way many colleagues behaved in the preceding months “did not create motivation” for him to stay.

Representative Kelly Armstrong, elected in 2018 and decided to run for governor, emphasized he has never “understood what normal was in Congress” after going through two impeachment trials against former President Donald Trump, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the Capitol Hill insurrection.

Gallagher, elected two years before Armstrong, echoed this sentiment, asserting that “Congress is becoming increasingly chaotic” and that condition “has been fairly consistent” throughout his 8 years in office.

In an interview on April 18, Gallagher hinted that he and his family had received death threats and late-night harassment. This comment suggests that his decision is related to concerns about increasing political violence in the United States.

Gallagher also mentioned that he had considered whether he would make a bigger impact on the issues he cares about by continuing to stay in Congress or working in the private sector.

Ken Buck, who departed in March, said that increasing tensions within the party influenced his decision. However, many colleagues argue that he himself contributed to the unrest. Buck voted to oust McCarthy, arguing that the former House Speaker “failed to keep promises” to significantly cut spending.

The Colorado congressman observed that the Republican Party no longer aimed for practical spending cuts but instead focused on protecting former President Trump and scoring political points.

“I think the wave of populism has eroded the conservative values that I brought to this place,” he said. “Now, we’re impeaching as if it’s some kind of ceremony.”

Buck noted that he had previously succeeded in passing bipartisan-supported legislation to change how companies handle complaints of sexual assault and harassment, raising awareness of antitrust laws targeting big tech. But he sarcastically called it a “mockery” when he found himself “working better with Democratic lawmakers than with the Republican Party.”

The Republican Party is concerned that the departure of some lawmakers from the House of Representatives could threaten their current majority status. Republican candidates may be defeated by Democratic contenders in special elections and the upcoming general election at the end of the year. Even if Republican candidates retain their seats, the departure of former lawmakers could open up opportunities for hardline Republican candidates who are more inclined to obstruct proposals rather than compromise.

In an interview with conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, House Speaker Mike Johnson acknowledged that “the big challenge right now is maintaining unity” and that the early departure of many individuals from the House does not help the Republican Party in its mission to “save the nation.”

“If we can’t maintain the majority, the Republican Party can’t do that,” he said.