New York Republican Rep. Richard Hanna announced Sunday he will not seek reelection. Hanna will complete three terms in office when he retires in 2016.
Hanna told The Syracuse Post-Standard his decision to retire has nothing to do with his primary challenger, New York Republican Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney, who challenged him last election cycle. Instead, he claims he wants to spend more time with his family.
“I took a poll, the only poll that matters,” Hanna said. “For the last year and a half or two years, when I leave for Washington, Grace or Emerson cries. And when I get back, they are happy to see me. But I’ve been indicted by my kids for being away from them.”
The liberal Republican often found himself at odds with the House GOP conference when it came to votes on the Benghazi select committee and cutting off federal funding for Planned Parenthood. Hanna also supports same-sex marriage and the Equal Rights Amendment.
Back in October, he said fellow House Republicans wanted the Benghazi select committee investigation to happen to harm Hillary Clinton politically.
Benghazi Select Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy took issue with Hanna’s remarks and responded, “There are seven members of the Benghazi Committee who are intimately familiar with the work of the committee, the motives behind the work, and the results of that work. Congressman Hanna is not one of them.”
Hanna insists that his values are Republican-centered, telling the Post Standard, “I think my fundamental core values are very Republican,” he said. “The party has changed, but I haven’t.”
Hanna ran unopposed in the last general election in New York’s 22nd Congressional district which is considered a swing district. Tenney is known as a conservative candidate in the race and is the only candidate running in the 22nd presently, but with Hanna out, other possible candidates from the Republican Party as well as the Democrat party may emerge in the coming weeks.