Michigan U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga said Monday he intends to run for another term in Congress, ending months of speculation about whether he'd join his colleagues headed for the exit next year.

The Michigan Republican made the announcement during a "Breakfast With Bill" event on the campus of Hope College in Holland on Monday, he said.

"There’s a lot of unfinished business. We have made some very good progress from where we had been in the previous four years ― inflation, energy policy, regulatory policy ― obviously with the financial services work that I've been involved with for a very long time," Huizenga told The Detroit News.

"Ultimately, at the end of the day, I felt like I would be able to contribute to finding some solutions to some pretty significant problems that we have to tackle yet. Everything from the economy to health care to foreign affairs."

A small businessman and former state lawmaker who has served in Congress for eight terms, Huizenga passed on a Senate bid earlier this year after President Donald Trump made clear he'd back former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers of White Lake for the GOP nomination.

His decision will likely be a relief for House GOP leaders and Trump's White House, which has been discouraging incumbents in competitive districts from running for higher office as Republicans prepare to defend their narrow majority in the House in next year's midterm elections.

National Democrats have said they are targeting Huizenga's district, where he represents a swath of west Michigan's lakeshore and defeated Democrat Jessica Swartz of Kalamazoo a year ago by nearly 12 percentage points, 55% to 43.4%.

Swartz is vying for the Democratic nomination against state Sen. Sean McCann of Kalamazoo, who recently picked up the endorsement of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

“At every opportunity, Huizenga has been a rubberstamp for his party bosses as he attacks our health care, supports Trump’s disastrous tariffs, raises Michigan families’ costs, and looks out for himself and his rich friends at our expense," McCann said in response to Huizenga's decision.

"Michigan voters will see a clear contrast between my record of delivering for our community and Huizenga’s self-serving failures, and I look forward to winning this race next year.”

Michigan's 4th District stretches from southern Ottawa County to northern Berrien County, covering all of Allegan and Van Buren counties, part of Kalamazoo County and Battle Creek in Calhoun County.

For years, Democrats have contended that the 4th District is getting "bluer" since Whitmer won the district in 2022 and its residents voted that year in support of Proposal 3 to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. Trump carried the district by 5.5 percentage points in 2024.

The Cook Political Report this year called the 4th District a "bright spot" for Democrats that could potentially "host a competitive race next year” after Democrats slightly increased their margins against Huizenga last fall over 2022's returns.

The newsletter Inside Elections this month revised its rating for the 4th District from "likely" Republican to "lean" Republican, noting the race "could get a lot more attention" if Huizenga were to retire.

"I approach every election as a very serious, public job review. So far, I've had eight of them where I have outperformed everybody’s expectations and what the numbers would suggest would be happening. … I do that by being honest with voters, being who I am," Huizenga said.

"They’ve been kind enough to rehire me, and we’ll keep doing that."

Huizenga serves as vice chair of the House Financial Services panel and is a senior member of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

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