Rep. Lois Capps ‘honored and humbled’ in her final speech to Congress

Rep. Lois Capps on Wednesday morning made her final speech before the U.S. House of Representatives as she prepares to retire in January.

Capps has served Central Coast residents in the 24th District since 1998, after she won a special election to replace her husband, Walter Capps, who died suddenly of a heart attack. She’ll be succeeded on Jan. 3 by Santa Barbara County Supervisor Salud Carbajal, who defeated Justin Fareed in November.

During her speech, Capps said she was “honored and humbled” when she was elected 18 years ago.

“It was the start of a life I never expected,” she said. “But I was eager to answer the call to public service on behalf of the citizens of the Central Coast of California.”

After leaving Congress, Capps said she’ll miss “the people” most of all. But she said the conclusion of her career as a congresswoman won’t necessarily mean the end of her time as a public servant.

“I may be retiring, but I don’t want to consider myself retired,” Capps said. “I prefer to say I’m graduating to continue working locally on issues that have defined my time in Congress.”

This story was originally published December 7, 2016 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Rep. Lois Capps ‘honored and humbled’ in her final speech to Congress."