Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) announced Tuesday he will resign from Congress at the end of next week.

“Today, I am announcing that I will depart Congress at the end of next week. I look forward to staying involved in our political process, as well as spending more time in Colorado and with my family,” he said in a statement posted to X.

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Buck previously announced he wouldn’t seek reelection, but his early departure will shrink the already extremely narrow Republican House majority.

 

Per CNN:

The Colorado Republican’s departure from the House will shake up the chamber’s partisan breakdown, where Republicans control only a very narrow majority – a major challenge for Speaker Mike Johnson who has frequently been forced to rely on votes from Democrats as well as Republicans to get major pieces of legislation across the finish line.

Buck’s decision to step down before the end of his term will trim Republicans’ slim edge to 218 seats over 213 for Democrats, with three vacancies. With that breakdown, Republicans could only afford to lose two votes to pass legislation on a party-line vote.

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Buck announced last year that he would not seek reelection, citing stagnation in Congress and his party’s election denialism as factors in his decision to not run in 2024.

WATCH:

NBC News previously noted that House Republicans have one of the smallest majorities in history.

From NBC News:

House Republicans have lost three members since December, with the expulsion of Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., the resignation of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and Rep. Bill Johnson’s, R-Ohio, departure this week to start a new job as the president of Youngstown State University. Republicans hold 219 seats to Democrats’ 213, giving new Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., little margin for error to pass legislation.

With Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., out until February for treatments related to his blood cancer diagnosis, that shrinks the majority even further.

Since the House was set at 435 members in 1913, some narrow majorities have faced difficulty getting bills passed while others achieved legislative success. Some have even seen the balance of power shift to the opposing party — though never in the middle of a session.

 

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