Republican Senator Mel Martinez announced Tuesday that he does not plan to run for re-election in 2010 and intends to return to the private sector, dpa reported.
"The inescapable truth, for me, is that the call to public service is strong, but the call to home, family and lifelong friends is even stronger," said Martinez, who fled Cuba when he was a teenager.
Martinez, 62, became a senator from Florida after winning in the 2004 election. He had previously served as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in President George W Bush's cabinet.
Martinez's parents with the aid of the Catholic Church helped him get out of Cuba and to Florida. He spoke no English when he arrived and lived in two foster homes before reuniting with his family.