First-term Rep. Eric Massa announced Wednesday that he will not seek reelection amid allegations that the New York Democrat, who is married with two children, made unwanted advances toward a junior male staffer.
A more senior staffer — Ronald Hikel, Massa’s former deputy chief of staff and legislative director — took the complaints to the ethics committee and was interviewed about them twice. Hikel declined to comment about the situation, but House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) confirmed that the Democratic leadership had been informed of the allegations before the news broke.