Sen Ron Johnson suggests he may not run for re-election in 2028

GOP Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin indicated that he does not want to run for a fourth Senate term, but he isn’t ruling it out.

Johnson, who is serving his third six-year Senate term, said during remarks at a Wednesday event hosted by the Milwaukee Press Club and WisPolitics.com that he learned from his run for a second term that “you can’t say … never.”

In a 2022 Wall Street Journal piece, Johnson explained his about-face on seeking another term.

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Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images/File)

“During the 2016 campaign, I said it would be my last campaign and final term. That was my strong preference and my wife’s. We both looked forward to a normal private life,” he said. “I believe America is in peril. Much as I’d like to ease into a quiet retirement, I don’t feel I should.”

The senator, who has been vocal in objecting to the Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act that most in the House GOP voted to pass last week, said during his remarks on Wednesday that he would like to place America on a “sustainable course” and return home.

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“I don’t covet the position,” he said.

But while he’s not slamming the door on the possibility of running for Senate again, he flatly ruled out the prospect of a presidential bid.

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Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., talks with reporters in the U.S. Capitol after the House passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on May 22, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)

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“No, God, what an awful job,” he said when asked whether he’d ever run for the presidency. He said he wouldn’t want to make the decisions that a commander in chief must make.