Rep. Joe Barton of Texas. Photo: Haraz N. Ghanbari / AP
Congressman Joe Barton of Texas said Thursday that he will not run for re-election after a nude photo he shared with a romantic partner was made public on social media last week, the Dallas Morning News reports.
Barton said, "I've always listened to people in Texas and worked for them in Washington, and I've been listening to a lot of people the last week in Texas ... There are enough people who lost faith in me that it's time to step aside and let there be a new voice for the 6th district in Washington, so I am not going to run for re-election."
The backdrop: Barton announced his intention to run for re-election earlier in November, but said he would reconsider that decision after the photos surfaced. His relationship with the woman who shared the photo was consensual, and he has not been accused of any wrongdoing. Barton also suggested in 2015 that he would go to the police if a woman shared the explicit photos and messages he sent her.
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