Republican state Sen. Val Stevens of Arlington, one of the Legislature’s most steadfast conservatives who worked tirelessly on improving the state’s child welfare system, said Thursday she will not seek re-election this fall.
Stevens, who won her first election in 1992, is in her fourth term in the Senate after serving two terms in the House of Representatives.
After 20 years in office, the 73-year-old said she’s ready to spend more time with her husband, two sons and six grandchildren.
“I am honored to have had the opportunity to represent the citizens of the 39th District,” she said in a statement. “Two decades in the Legislature has given me the opportunity to work with many wonderful people and to be their voice when they needed help navigating the burdensome morass of government regulations.”