House Majority Leader Eric Cantor Steps Down

A day after stepping down as Majority leader, Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) has said in the Richmond Times‑Dispatch that he will reign his seat on August 18.

Mr. Cantor's decision makes way for his deputy, Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to succeed him in the number two slot in the GOP-controlled chamber. The official hand-off happened Thursday evening.

This morning, Mr. Cantor addressed his colleagues on the House floor, reflected on his life, his time in Congress and the challenges facing the country.

Representative Cantor (R-VA) first entered the House in 2001 after succeeding Representative Thomas Bliley to represent Virginia's mostly rural 7th District in the 2000 elections. One of Cantor's first nationally televised appearances as a Capitol Hill lawmaker came during the annual March for Life rally he attended less than a month into his Washington political career.

His ascension to the GOP's upper ranks in the House was swift: just weeks after securing his second term, he was tapped to be Chief Deputy Republican Whip, the party's highest-ranking appointed position. And he took a coveted seat on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, where he was a central figure in securing a slate of tax cuts sought by President George W. Bush.

Representative Cantor was also heavily involved in the Bush White House's attempts to overhaul Social Security, and in the GOP's failed attempt to maintain its House majority through the 2006 elections.

He continued to gain power as House Minority Whip in the 111th Congress, and left his mark by spearheading much of the Republican opposition to the Affordable Care Act and establishing himself as a leading voice of the party on many issues, particularly Israel and the Middle East.

After his party wrested back control of the House in 2010's midterm elections, Representative Cantor's position as a leading voice of the party was solidified, and he was widely seen as a long-term successor to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH).

But his surprise primary loss this spring killed off any hopes of a continued climb in the ranks.

On June 11, Representative Cantor announced he'd be stepping down from his second-in-command post, and would support Representative McCarthy to take his place. The next week, he engaged in a scheduling colloquy with Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), who paid tribute to Cantor's time in the House.

On July 11, Representative McCarthy engaged in his first scheduling colloquy, effectively beginning the transition from Mr. Cantor.