Missouri Rep. Jason Smith plans to run for a sixth term in the House rather than seek his state’s soon to be open Senate seat while launching a bid to be the top Republican on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee in the 118th Congress.
Smith, 41, is currently the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee. His decision to seek a switch to Ways and Means, which was first reported by NBC News, comes as that slot will open up with the retirement of Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, after this Congress.
“I am ready to be the next Republican chair of Ways and Means,” Smith told NBC in comments his spokesman later confirmed.