Sen. Chuck Grassley, who is 88, will seek another 6-year term

Sen. Chuck Grassley, the oldest serving Republican in the U.S. Senate, announced Friday that he will seek another six-year term to represent the state of Iowa.

Grassley, who is 88 years old, made the announcement that he would seek his eighth term in the Senate in a 5 a.m. ET tweet.

The former chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Grassley has played a key role in helping confirm conservative federal judges as well as Supreme Court justices. Polls taken before his announcement show him with a comfortable lead over Democratic challenger Abby Finkenauer.

Last year Grassley conceded that his age would be a factor in deciding whether to seek reelection, but added that he still felt fit to serve.

“I’m working just as hard now as I did when I was 40 years younger, 40 years ago,” the senator said.

Grassley, who turned 88 on Sept. 17 and would be 95 if he won reelection and served out his term, is not currently the oldest serving member of Congress. That distinction belongs to Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, who turned 88 on June 9. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., turned 88 on June 22.

None of those members of Congress holds the record as the oldest to have served. Rep. Ralph Hall, D-Texas, retired in 2015 at the age of 91. Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., retired in 2001, when he was 100.

President Biden, meanwhile, is the oldest person to ever hold the office, at age 78. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is 81, and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer is 82. And Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the highest-ranking Republican in Washington, is 79.

____

Read more from Yahoo News:

• Are Biden’s vaccine requirements legal?

• What Iceland’s landmark carbon removal project means for the fight against climate change

• Rapping molecular scientist offers Nicki Minaj a lesson about COVID vaccines

• Climate change and drought threaten a way of life for Arizona farmers

• COVID may never fully disappear. Here’s how we live with it.