According to the news search results, Rep. Jennifer Wexton, a Democrat from Virginia, announced on Monday, September 18, 2023, that she will not seek reelection in 2024 due to a new diagnosis of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), a rare and debilitating neurological disorder.
She had previously revealed in April that she had Parkinson’s disease, but she received a modified diagnosis after feeling like she wasn’t responding well to treatment. She said that PSP is “a kind of ‘Parkinson’s on steroids’” and that there is no cure or effective treatment for it.
Wexton said she plans to continue serving the rest of her term, which runs through 2024, and that she is “heartbroken” to give up something she loved after many years of serving her community.
Wexton was a prosecutor and state legislator before she was elected to Congress in 2018, defeating Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock with 56% of the vote. She won with 53% of the vote in 2022.
She represents Virginia’s 10th Congressional District, which is centered in Loudoun County, an outer suburb of Washington, D.C. The district is slightly Democratic-leaning but has a history of switching support between parties.
PSP is a form of atypical parkinsonian syndrome, also known as a Parkinson-plus disorder, according to the National Institutes of Health.
It causes problems with balance, movement, vision, speech and swallowing. It usually affects people in their 60s and 70s, and the average life expectancy after diagnosis is about seven years.
Parkinson’s disease is a more common brain disorder that also causes involuntary movements, stiffness and difficulty with coordination. The symptoms and rate of progression vary among individuals. Early symptoms are subtle and occur gradually, according to the National Institute on Aging.
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