Now that former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) has withdrawn from consideration to be President-elect Trump’s attorney general, questions are swirling about whether he will return to the House — or if he even can.
House rules and precedents and the manner in which Gaetz resigned mean he will not be coming back before the end of the year. But whether he can return next year — if he wants to — is unclear.
Here are the House rules, precedents and dynamics at play.
Gaetz cannot come back this year
Gaetz abruptly resigned from the House last week, the same day Trump announced Gaetz as his pick for attorney general.
He cannot return for the 118th Congress, which will last through the end of the year, according to written precedents under which the House operates: “The resignation of a Member from the House ... ordinarily may not be withdrawn.”
Unclear whether he can unilaterally return in 2025
Gaetz this month was reelected to represent Florida’s 1st Congressional District for the 119th Congress, which starts Jan. 3.
While rare, there is precedent for a member-elect resigning a seat before taking........