With the upcoming departure of longtime Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., in 2026, a battle will soon commence for his coveted role as Senate minority whip, the second-highest leadership role in the caucus next to Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer.

«There comes a point in your career when the torch must be passed, and I’ve reached that point,» Durbin said during a press conference in Springfield Thursday. «I will not be seeking re-election to this United States Senate seat.»

Several names have already been floated for the whip job, including some typically vocal senators and others whose quiet policy chops appear just as attractive.

One candidate mentioned has been Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz.

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Senators Sheldon Whitehouse, Patty Murray and Brian Schatz are considered whip considerations. (Reuters)

Schatz, 52, is in his third term and is Durbin’s current chief deputy whip as well as deputy conference secretary, a job involving communication and strategy for Senate Democrats.

He is also the top Democrat on the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, given the Aloha State’s heavy native population.

Schatz has been active behind the scenes for liberals, placing holds on hundreds of Trump nominees for State Department positions in response to the president’s efforts to shutter USAID.

A former member of the Green Party in Hawaii, he is also considered a bridge between progressives and mainstream liberals.

A former top aide to previous Senate mainstays Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., told The Hill it’s hard to tell how leadership elections will go because they’re closed-door votes, but «as far as I can tell, Sen. Schatz seems to be in a pretty good position if he wants to take the leap.»

DICK DURBIN, NO 2 SENATE DEMOCRAT, WON’T SEEK RE-ELECTION

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., sits in a hearing. (Getty Images)

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., is rumored to be a possible successor to Durbin as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to Politico.

Whitehouse has raised his profile as another one of President Donald Trump’s loudest critics, regularly creating viral clips of combativeness with administration nominees in the various hearings he’s sat in on.

Another lawmaker mentioned is Washington Sen. Patty Murray, who had been third in line to the presidency until the GOP took back the Senate.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa., now holds that role, which is typically held by the longest-serving senator of the majority party.

Murray is also the top Democrat on the influential Senate Appropriations Committee.

Frequently called the «mom in tennis shoes» who ran for the Senate in 1992 as a relative political newcomer, Murray once said she and others «got into the U.S. Senate because we were mad.»

She lobbied officials in Olympia to save an education program from budget cuts when she was told «you can’t make a difference,» according to a biography from the Washington Secretary of State’s office.

That populist history, along with Murray’s long tenure and closeness with leadership, could also make her a lock to succeed Durbin.

Fox News Digital reached out to Schatz, Whitehouse and Murray for comment but did not immediately hear back.

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Durbin spoke tearfully about his decision to retire during a press conference outside the same Springfield home where he announced his first Senate run nearly 30 years ago.

He hearkened back to his risky move to give up a «safe House seat.»

«So, for the last 29 years, I’ve been vindicated that that decision paid off,» said Durbin.

«I love this job. I think it’s a terrific job, but I also know reality.»

Un ataque masivo lanzado por Rusia durante la madrugada de este jueves contra la capital ucraniana dejó al menos 12 muertos y más de 70 heridos, según el último balance oficial.

El Servicio Estatal de Emergencias (DSNS) detalló que 42 personas fueron hospitalizadas, entre ellas seis niños. La búsqueda de personas atrapadas bajo los escombros de edificios residenciales dañados aún continuaba.

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El ataque involucró drones, misiles guiados y misiles balísticos dirigidos a diferentes zonas de Kiev, según el jefe de la Administración Militar de la ciudad, Timur Tkachenko.

Según informó a Reuters una fuente militar ucraniana, en el ataque se usó misil balístico norcoreano KN-23 . La Fuerza Aérea ucraniana, afirmó que Rusia disparó 70 misiles y 145 drones durante la noche. De estos, 112 “fueron derribados”.

El alcalde de Kiev, Vitali Klitschko, anunció que ocho personas murieron en los ataques. El ministro del Interior, Igor Klymenko, confirmó el balance pero matizó que podría aumentar porque todavía hay cuerpos “bajo los escombros”.

Los daños más significativos se registraron en el distrito de Sviatoshin, donde un incendio y la destrucción parcial de dos edificios residenciales marcaron la magnitud del impacto. Además, se reportaron incendios en garajes, edificios administrativos e inmuebles comerciales, y vehículos que fueron incendiados por fragmentos de misiles y drones que explotaron o fueron derribados en el aire.

Además de Kiev, las regiones de Zhitómir, Dinipropetrovsk, Járkov, Póltava, Jmelnitski, Sumi y Zaporiyia también fueron blanco de ataques, aunque la capital fue la más afectada. Klimenko indicó que la situación en el distrito de Sviatoshin fue especialmente trágica, con escombros aun siendo retirados de una casa destruida, mientras se escuchaban llamadas telefónicas provenientes de debajo de los escombros.

La información también menciona que dos niños siguen desaparecidos en ese mismo sector.

El ministro destacó que psicólogos del DSNS y de la policía están trabajando en los lugares donde se han producido heridos. Además, la policía realiza recorridos en los edificios cercanos a los sitios afectados para asegurarse del estado de los residentes.

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Este ataque ocurrió después de que Ucrania solicitara una tregua en los recientes ataques rusos con misiles y drones de largo alcance dirigidos contra infraestructuras civiles, una petición que Rusia ha rechazado de manera rotunda.

Zelenski recortó su viaje a Sudáfrica tras el bombardeo ruso en la capital de Ucrania

El presidente ucraniano, Volodimir Zelenski, decidió acortar su viaje a Sudáfrica este jueves después del ataque ruso,uno de los peores contra Kiev desde el inicio de la invasión.

“Anulo parte del programa de esta visita y regresaré inmediatamente a Ucrania después de mi reunión con el presidente sudafricano” Cyril Ramaphosa, indicó Zelenski en X.

El mandatario ucraniano instó a Rusia a “detener inmediata e incondicionalmente” los ataques contra Ucrania.

“Putin demuestra con sus actos (…) que no respeta ningún esfuerzo de paz y que solo desea continuar la guerra”, afirmó el ministro de Relaciones Exteriores ucraniano, Andrii Sibiga, en redes sociales.

Igualmente, el primer ministro ucraniano, Denis Shmigal, afirmó que Rusia “aterrorizó las ciudades ucranianas toda la noche”.

El ministerio ruso de Defensa afirmó por su lado que los bombardeos no fueron contra blancos civiles. “Las fuerzas armadas rusas llevaron a cabo un ataque masivo con armas de largo alcance aéreas, terrestres y marítimas, y drones, contra las industrias aeronáutica, aeroespacial, de construcción de maquinaria y de vehículos blindados de Ucrania”, dijo afirmó un comunicado del ministerio ruso.

El ataque coincidió con las hasta ahora infructuosas gestiones diplomáticas del presidente estadounidense Donald Trump.

El miércoles, Trump afirmó haber alcanzado un acuerdo con Moscú, pero no con Zelenski, a quien reprochó no aceptar la ocupación rusa de la península de Crimea, anexada por Rusia desde 2014.

Trump indicó en su plataforma Truth Social que Crimea “se perdió hace años” y afirmó que la negativa ucraniana “no hará nada más que prolongar el ‘campo de muerte’”.

India is vowing to hunt down terrorists «to the ends of the earth» Thursday as tensions with Pakistan escalate in the wake of a shooting in India’s Kashmir region that left 26 people dead.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at a public rally that «India will identify, track and punish every terrorist, their handlers and their backers.» 

«We will pursue them to the ends of the earth,» he reportedly added. 

Tuesday’s attack was the worst assault in years targeting civilians in the restive region that has seen an anti-India rebellion for more than three decades. Gunmen opened fire on mostly tourists who were visiting a popular scenic meadow, killing 26 and injuring 17, according to Reuters. 

INDIA DOWNGRADES TIES WITH PAKISTAN AFTER ATTACK ON KASHMIR TOURISTS 

The Indian government did not publicly produce any evidence connecting the attack to its neighbor, but said it had «cross-border» links to Pakistan. However, Pakistan denied any connection to the attack, which was claimed by a militant group that called itself the Kashmir Resistance. 

Indian authorities said Thursday that all visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be revoked with effect from Sunday, adding that all Pakistanis currently in India must leave before their visas expire based on the revised timeline. The country also announced other measures, including cutting the number of diplomatic staff and closing the only functional land border crossing between the countries. 

TRUMP EXTENDS ‘DEEPEST SYMPATHIES’ AFTER GUNMEN KILL 20 IN INDIA’S KASHMIR REGION 

Paramilitary soldiers stand guard near Pahalgam on April 22 in India. More than 20 people, mainly tourists, were killed in a terrorist attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Tuesday. (Waseem Andrabi/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

In response, Pakistan closed its airspace for all Indian-owned or Indian-operated airlines and suspended all trade with India including to and from any third country. 

Pakistan’s National Security Committee also condemned India’s «belligerent measures.» It said that while Pakistan remained committed to peace, it would never allow anyone to «transgress its sovereignty, security, dignity and inalienable rights.» 

President Donald Trump extended his «deepest sympathies» on Tuesday following the attack. 

Supporters of the Pakistan Murkazi Muslim League party protest against the suspension of a water-sharing treaty by India with Pakistan, in Lahore, Pakistan on Thursday, April 24. (AP/K.M. Chaudary)

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«Deeply disturbing news out of Kashmir,» Trump wrote on his TRUTH Social account. «The United States stands strong with India against Terrorism. We pray for the souls of those lost, and for the recovery of the injured. Prime Minister Modi, and the incredible people of India, have our full support and deepest sympathies. Our hearts are with you all!»  

Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace and the Associated Press contributed to this report.