WASHINGTON ― Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) announced Wednesday he wouldn’t run to be the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee next year, endorsing Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) as his replacement.

Ranking member Jerry Nadler (D-NY) dropped out of the race to run for another term as the top Democrat on the powerful House Judiciary Committee, paving the way for Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) to ascend to the position.

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) will not seek to remain as ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee and is endorsing Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), his rival for the role, to succeed him. Why it matters: Raskin had been seen as the heavy favorite to take down Nadler as part of a multi-committee effort by House Democrats to jettison their oldest leaders.