Once a rising Democratic Party star, Rep. Stephanie Murphy shocked the political world when she announced her retirement last December. She’s leaving to spend more time with her family. No, really. No scandal, no skeletons spilling out of her closet. Honestly, that’s why.
“Nobody believes me,” she told CQ Roll Call recently, “because that’s usually what people say when they’re getting fired.”
Some cynics might say she faced just that. After her announcement, her now-open seat in Florida’s 7th District was remapped to lean slightly to the right and is rated Likely Republican by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales — but Murphy knows how to win in GOP-leaning places. She’s just worried there won’t be as many centrist Democrats like her, who can occasionally buck party leadership to reach independent and moderate Republican voters in these battleground districts.
