In a message posted on her website Wednesday, Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann has announced that she will not seek re-election in 2014.
Bachmann, a Republican whose views have earned her national attention, said that she made the “right decision” not to run for a fifth term, notes The Los Angeles Times. She said that it was not based on the challenges the country faces or because of recent inquiries into her failed 2012 presidential run.
“My future is full, it is limitless, and my passions for America will remain,” Bachamann, a Tea Party favorite, said in the video.
She added, “My decision was not influenced by any concerns about my being re-elected. This decision was not impacted in any way by the recent inquiries into the activities of my former presidential campaign.”
According to USA Today, Bachmann was going to face a rematch with Democrat Jim Graves in 2014. In November, he lost by just 4,3000 votes. She had already started her campaign, buying up air time for ads.
However, in January, former Bachmann aide Peter Waldron sent a complaint to the Federal Election Committee, citing improper payments to an Iowa state senator who ran her presidential campaign in the state. Waldron also listed other violations.
Bachmann was dedicated to her opposition to President Obama’s health care plan and won the 2011 Iowa straw poll. While she did well during the early days of the primary campaign, but she lost steam quickly and dropped out.
image: YouTube