WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. John Breaux, D-La., will announce he is retiring after three terms, Roll Call reported Monday.
A centrist Democrat, Breaux has devoted much of his Senate career to reform of the Medicare system, and often was a thorn in the side of more liberal members of his party.
According to Roll Call, Breaux will make his announcement Monday afternoon in Baton Rouge, ending months of speculation that his current term would be his last. Early betting is that two members of the House of Representatives, Republican David Vitter and Democrat Chris John, will face each other in the race to succeed him.
Breaux is the fifth senior Democrat retiring at the end of the current Congress. First elected in 1986, Breaux was last re-elected in 1998, winning the state's open primary with 64 percent of the vote out of almost one million cast.
