Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.) will announce Friday that he won’t run for re-election in November.

“It’s got nothing to do with politics,” the 68-year-old Congressman said in an interview with the Boston Globe. “Life is about change. I think it’s healthy. It’s time.”

Delahunt’s retirement does not come as a surprise, as he refused to rule it out when asked about his re-election plans last month.

Delahunt also cited the death last year of Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) as among the factors that he weighed in deciding to leave, something he said he had been considering for several years.

“Clearly, since his death, there’s something missing. There’s a void. With the void, you feel the need to be here because there’s much to do,” Delahunt told the Globe in an exclusive interview.

Delahunt’s district, which stretches from Cape Cod to the South Shore, could be targeted by Republicans. Earlier this week Joseph Kennedy III, the son of former Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-Mass.), made it clear that he would not run for Delahunt’s seat.

“This departure leaves a void because Bill Delahunt is an incredibly strong voice for Massachusetts in Washington,” Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) said in a statement.