Local leaders honor US Rep Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, who announced she won’t run for reelection

Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, announced in a video Tuesday that she won’t run for reelection once her current term ends in 2025. She was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992 after serving 10 years on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors. 

Reflecting on her time in Congress, Eshoo said she’s taken great pride in her many accomplishments — pushing for the federal recognition of the Armenian genocide, lifting insurance policy caps that greatly affected those with disabilities, standardizing e-signatures on various documents, which became a model adopted by the European Union, and advocating for changes in women’s health including reclassifying reconstructive surgery after mastectomies as necessary instead of cosmetic and ensuring women, particularly women of color, are included in clinical trials. 

Her tenure also came with challenges. Eshoo acknowledged that her work was demanding and likely led her to disappoint friends and family. Flying from Silicon Valley to the nation’s capital weekly meant missing gatherings. Now, Eshoo said she plans to make up for lost time, gathering with friends and family and traveling to places she’s yet to visit. 

“I have given my all to this job. I have loved it, every hour, every moment, commuting across the country every week for 31 years,” Eshoo said. “I have loved and continue to love it but I want to have some time for Anna. This job doesn’t really allow personal time, very, very little personal time. Most of the time it’s none.” 

With one years left in her term, Eshoo said she’s still focused on pushing a few policy matters across the finish line, specifically, an effort to democratize artificial intelligence. Eshoo shared appreciation for some of her policy ideas being included in an executive order recently signed by the president including creating the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource to improve the quality of and access to AI. 

“It holds great progress but it also holds great peril, so Congress needs to see that academia, the small business community, nonprofits, philanthropies, all of these sectors of our country have access to what is being hailed as one of the great new innovations of the 21st century,” Eshoo said. 

Former U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier, who served alongside Eshoo on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors before also taking on the halls of Congress, lauded Eshoo as a level-headed and inspirational leader who will leave behind an extraordinary legacy, particularly on health, biotech and life science policy. 

Eshoo’s departure from Congress will be a great loss for the region, Speier added, noting Eshoo “never shrank from a fight that was worth taking on.” Looking ahead, Speier, who retired from Congress at the start of this year and is now running for a seat on the Board of Supervisors, said she hopes to “make good trouble” locally together.  

“As she became more senior, her political astuteness, profile and ability to get things passed was quite significant,” Speier said, noting Eshoo’s office was lined with pieces of signed legislation. “She was quite prolific.” 

Beyond policy and advocacy work, Speier said she also looks forward to traveling and spending time with her friend who recently welcomed her first grandchild. 

“She’s got a great opportunity to explore lots of new ideas and chapters and I’m sure she will,” Speier said. 

Other local leaders shared similar appreciation for Eshoo and her years of service. Assemblymember Diane Papan, D-San Mateo, thanked Eshoo for her “tireless service and unwavering dedication to the betterment of our community,” in an email statement. 

State Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, said he holds Eshoo “in the highest regards,” in an emailed statement Tuesday and called for the congresswoman to be celebrated for her “remarkable years of service” before seeking to find who may replace her. 

“She embodies a blend of warmth, strength, and effectiveness — a unique force in our political landscape,” Becker said in a statement. “Congresswoman Eshoo’s dedication to public service is nothing short of extraordinary. Her tireless work ethic, unwavering integrity, and genuine love for her constituents, our community, our state, and our country have set an inspiring standard for all public servants.” 

U.S. Rep. Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco, said in a statement that he’s been blessed to work alongside Eshoo during his first year in office, lauding the congresswoman for her work on the Energy and Commerce Committee. Mullin, who like Berman got his political start working for Speier, then later succeeded her in Congress, said the region is poised for major change as both women step away from federal policymaking. 

“Congresswoman Anna Eshoo is a living legend for the Peninsula and Silicon Valley. For over three decades, Anna has set the standard for constituent service and delivering for her district. She is universally respected and revered, and her district and Congress has benefited greatly from her steady and moral leadership during some of the most challenging times our country has faced,” Mullin said in a press release. “Anna’s retirement from the Congress next year, combined with Jackie Speier’s prior departure from Congress to return home to San Mateo County, signals a remarkable transition for Peninsula politics. We are deeply grateful for Anna’s unyielding fidelity to our county and our country.”