Regaining control of the Senate during the November midterms just got a little harder for Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Longtime Democratic Sen. Gary Peters will return to academia after leaving Congress, taking a leadership position at the University of Southern California following the completion of his second Senate term. USC announced Monday that the Michigan Democrat will become director of the Center for the Political Future at the university’s Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences after his Senate term expires in January.
Peters will also become the Carmen H. and Louis Warschaw Endowed Chair in Practical Politics, a position currently held by veteran Democratic strategist Robert Shrum, the center’s founding director. Shrum is scheduled to retire at the end of 2026. The move will return Peters to higher education after a political career that has included service in both chambers of Congress as well as state and local government.
“I see this as a capstone to my years in public service and an opportunity to help prepare the next generation to take the reins,” Peters said in announcing the move. Peters said he was attracted to the center in part because of its focus on bringing people with opposing political views together and encouraging students to become more involved in government and public affairs.
At USC, Peters will work alongside Republican strategist Mike Murphy, who will remain co-director of the Center for the Political Future. The university says it believes the center is the only university-based political organization in the country jointly led by a Democrat and Republican.
Founded in 2018, the center seeks to combine academic research with practical experience in politics while promoting civil discussion across partisan lines. Its programs include political fellows, public events, internships, scholarships and professional development opportunities for students. Peters also plans to expand the center’s operations beyond Southern California.
He is expected to divide his time between Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., and teach courses at both locations. Peters plans to use USC’s Capital Campus in Washington as a base for programs that will give students greater exposure to federal policymaking and government institutions. He also wants to connect USC professors and their research more directly with policymakers in Washington. “I would like to help bridge the gap between academia and practical policymaking in Washington,” Peters said.
The new position represents a return to Peters’ professional roots. Before entering Congress, Peters spent more than two decades in the private sector, including positions with Merrill Lynch and UBS/PaineWebber. He also taught strategic management and finance at Oakland University and Wayne State University.
Peters later served as the Robert and Marjorie Griffin Endowed Chair in American Government at Central Michigan University. Earlier in his career, he studied political philosophy at Michigan State University and considered becoming a professor before his political career took precedence. Peters served in the U.S. Navy Reserve and held local office before winning election to the Michigan Senate. He was elected to the U.S. House in 2008 and served three terms before winning his Senate seat in 2014. He was reelected in 2020.
He announced in January 2025 that he would not seek a third Senate term in 2026, opening up one of the country’s most closely watched Senate races. His current term expires in January 2027. During his time in Washington, Peters developed a reputation for working across party lines.
The nonpartisan Center for Effective Lawmaking ranked Peters as the most effective member of the Senate during each of the previous three Congresses, according to USC. During the 117th Congress, he authored 19 bipartisan standalone bills that became law, which the university said was the highest total for a senator in a single Congress in more than four decades.
Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, who worked with Peters on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, praised his former committee colleague following the USC announcement.
Scott described Peters as a “consistent, bipartisan partner” who was willing to work across party lines, adding that he expects the Michigan Democrat to bring the same approach to his new position.
