Republican Rep. Ed Royce, chairman of the powerful House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced Monday he will not seek reelection in November.
Royce, who lives in Fullerton and has offices in Brea and Rowland Heights, has served in Congress since 1993, previously serving 10 years in the state Senate.
“It’s truly an honor to represent the people of California’s 39th Congressional District,” Royce said in a statement released by the Foreign Affairs Committee. “Every day, it’s my mission to fight for freedom, opportunity and a limited government. In recent years, we’ve made a real difference. From Sacramento to Washington, we’ve enacted critical reforms to combat the modern-day slavery of human trafficking. We’ve achieved common-sense tax and regulatory reforms to help small businesses and middle-class families realize their American dream. And with great persistence, we’ve helped shut down the global ivory trade to save the world’s most majestic animals and deny vital funding to terrorist groups and criminal networks.
“In this final year of my Foreign Affairs Committee chairmanship, I want to focus fully on the urgent threats facing our nation, including: the brutal, corrupt and dangerous regimes in Pyongyang and Tehran, Vladimir Putin’s continued efforts to weaponize information to fracture western democracies and growing terrorist threats in Africa and Central Asia. With this in mind, and with the support of my wife Marie, I have decided not to seek reelection in November.
“I want to extend my deepest appreciation to the people of the 39th District for entrusting me with the responsibility to represent them. Our district is blessed to be diverse, and I’ve been successful in part because of my great staff and the relationships we’ve built with families, businesses and leaders in each of our communities. We’ve personally helped countless Southern Californians.
“Orange County will always be home to Marie and me, and we look forward to being with all our friends at Lunar New Years, Korean American Days, Fourth of Julys and many other community events for years to come.”
President Donald Trump on Monday formally nominated Marie Royce to be assistant secretary of state for educational and cultural affairs.
–City News Service