Grijalva plans to return, but there is a threat of a succession dispute

Raúl Grijalva, the House's top natural resources Democrat, plans to return to Capitol Hill for the post-election lame-duck session after a cancer scare in November.

But some committee members have privately complained about Grijalva's extended absence since the start of the year and questioned whether he would be able to remain a ranking member or become chairman, lawmakers and aides told POLITICO's E&E News.

The progressive Democrat from Arizona has declared that his next term would be his last and has created a vacancy at the top of a Democratic committee for the first time since 2015 – a vacancy that fellow progressive Jared Huffman of California is eager to fill. Grijalva vows to keep his office in the next Congress and defends his ability to serve.

“I’ve been on this committee for 22 years, okay? So it’s not that I don’t know what I’m doing,” Grijalva said. “I hope to keep it. I hope I can prove to my colleagues that I can do this job and that I have the capacity to do it.”