Senator Boxer Plans Retirement From Senate After Current Term
WASHINGTON (CBS SF) - Longtime Bay Area politician Barbara Boxer says she will not seek re-election to the U.S. Senate in 2016.
The 74-year-old Boxer announced that she would not seek a 5th term in a video interview with her grandson.
"Some people are old at 40, some people are young at 80," said Boxer. "As for me, I feel as young as I did when I got elected."
Boxer stressed that she was not retiring from politics, but rather leaving the senate to come home and continue fighting for causes she believes in.
"I beyond proud that the people of California have believed in me all of these years," she said. "What an opportunity the people of California gave me.
She was first elected to the House in 1982 and then to the Senate one decade later. It was an election that marked a watershed year for women in politics with four winning U.S. Senate seats, including fellow Californian Dianne Feinstein.
In the Senate, Boxer has been a staunch supporter of abortion rights, gun control and environmental protections.
Boxer's first elected office was as a member of the Marin County Board of Supervisors, where the former Greenbrae resident was elected in 1976.
Her staff has organized an online "Thank you card" for those who want to share their feelings about the news.
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