While it's not exactly a stampede of state lawmakers heading for the exit, 30 members of Pennsylvania's General Assembly have decided not to stand for re-election this year.

That's more than at any time since 2006, when the same number of lawmakers opted not to seek reelection in the year after they voted themselves a double digit pay raise. The backlash to that controversial pay raise vote was so strong it caused lawmakers to repeal their raise four months later and led to more than 20 additional incumbents losing their seats in that year's election.

But this year is different. There was no controversial vote that so enraged the public they stormed the Capitol. So why are so many leaving?

The reasons seem varied.

Some are seeking a higher office so they are not seeking re-election to their current position. Running for both could be seen as not being fully committed to either office.

Rep. Stephen Bloom, R-Cumberland County, is among those with his sights set on moving to a congressional seat. He could run for both seats but if his bid to go to Washington, D.C., is successful, he said the state would have to hold a special election for his House seat, which would cost taxpayers a lot of money.

Besides that, he said party insiders would pick the candidates who would run in that special election. "I want to make sure my successor is chosen by the people and not political insiders," he said.

There are a few that have stumbled on to other career opportunities, such as Matt Baker, a longtime GOP representative from Tioga County who took a position with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or Scott Petri, a Bucks County Republican who landed the position as executive director of the Philadelphia Parking Authority. Both resigned earlier this year.

Rep. John McGinnis, a Republican from Blair County, said he committed to serving only three terms when he first ran and he is a man of his word.

"It's public service, not a career," he said. "My predecessor was here for 17 terms. He made it a career and got rich from that career. I don't like public officials enriching themselves at the expense of the public."

For some, health reasons are contributing to their decisions. Some are rumored to have anticipated facing a challenging race to win re-election and didn't feel like investing the energy into campaigning for another term.

Since more than half of those leaving are Republicans, Lebanon Valley College political science professor Jim Broussard suggests that perhaps those in swing areas, such as the Philadelphia suburbs and Lehigh Valley, may feel that this is a bad year for Republicans so "why spend the time and spend the money and lose when you could close out your career with a voluntary retirement."

Some, like Rep. Joe Markosek, D-Allegheny County, said he decided it's just time for a change of pace.

"If you really do want to do some other things other than get carried out of here," he said stopping to laugh, "and you have the energy and some of the resources to do other things, you have to do them while you can."

Rep. Will Tallman, R-York County, plans on taking a nine-month Christian mission trip to Papua New Guinea starting in the summer of 2019, something he said he could not do if he were to remain a state representative.

Rep. Ron Marsico, R-Dauphin County, said he wants to pursue serving his community in a different way by helping his son, Wayde, with a nonprofit foundation to promote youth sports.

Rep. C. Adam Harris told the Public Opinion in Chambersburg that he was ready to embark on a new journey and focus his time specializing in one area.

He said, "My only complaint about the job is that you are spread so thin and are dealing with so many different issues every day that you never really are able to gain a lot of expertise in any one area. ... Every day you are still also dealing with a wide array of issues that your constituents bring to your attention. I'm hopeful in my next life I can specialize in some aspect and just work to become a real expert in that field."

Outside observers say what some members may not be saying publicly but could be entering into their calculations is the intense scrutiny that the energized #MeToo movement has brought on, as well as the deep partisan divide that exist in the Capitol these days and the lack of collegiality among members.

"The camaraderie, in many cases, no longer exists," said Franklin & Marshall College political scientist Terry Madonna. "They are not playing golf, having dinner and socializing. It's all gotten much more bitter. They don't like each other and don't trust each other."

GOP strategist Charlie Gerow said he recalls the days when the Republican and Democratic leaders would go for each other's throats on the floor and then be seen out together at dinner hours later. But many legislators from those days are already gone, and more are leaving, including Markosek, Marsico, Philadelphia Democratic Reps. Curtis Thomas and Bill Keller, Rep. John Taylor, R-Philadelphia, and Sen. Stewart Greenleaf of Montgomery County.

That doesn't bode well for efforts to change the environment at the Capitol, at least in the short term, Gerow said.

"The more senior members were kind of the link to the past where things weren't quite so partisan and could talk about the good old days and remind younger members there are different and better ways of doing things," he said. "The younger members have not experienced anything but the partisan divisiveness."

Jeff Coleman, a former House member and communications consultant, worries that the nasty tone of politics these days could deter people from running for office.

"What concerns me about politics in general is that the lack of civility and breakdown of the rules of decorum have brought in a kind of doldrums to politics and people don't want to be part of a system when they don't feel they can be respected and their views can't get a fair hearing," he said.

While decorum is still kept for the most part on the House and Senate floor, he said outside those venues, it's a whole different world. The name-calling, pettiness and social media attacks from those who hold a different view has soured some people's desire to be in political office.

"For people who want to make a difference, who are smart, who are intelligent and want their lives to count, politics doesn't feel all that meaningful right now," Coleman said. "It feels more like a game."