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California congresswoman Katie Hill, a freshman Democrat and a rising star in the party, announced her resignation on Sunday amid allegations that she had a sexual relationship with a member of her congressional staff.
“It is with a broken heart that today I announce my resignation from Congress,” Ms Hill (32) wrote in a resignation letter. “This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do, but I believe it is the best thing for my constituents, my community, and our country.”
Last week the House ethics committee opened an investigation into the allegation that Ms Hill had a sexual relationship with her legislative director, Graham Kelly, in possible violation of a House rule forged in response to the #MeToo era. Ms Hill denied the claim in a letter to constituents, in which she also admitted to a separate relationship with a member of her campaign team that she acknowledged was “inappropriate”.
House rules enacted at the height of the #MeToo movement in 2018 prohibit relationships between members of Congress and their employees. But the rules do not cover campaign aides.
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Mistakes
In her resignation letter, Ms Hill alleged her husband and “hateful political operatives” co-ordinated a “smear campaign” against her.
The congresswoman also apologised for “mistakes made along the way and the people who have been hurt”.
The ethics inquiry stemmed from the publication of a nude photographs and private text messages on the conservative website, Redstate. According to Ms Hill, the materials were leaked to the website by her estranged husband amid acrimonious divorce proceedings.
The Daily Mail followed last week with the publication of more explicit photographs of Ms Hill and claims that she had a Nazi-inspired tattoo. Lawyers for the congresswoman denied the claims and sent a cease-and-desist letter to the Mail that demanded the publication “remove these photos from publication at once”.
Supporters and activists say Ms Hill is a victim of “revenge porn”, a criminal offense in most states, including California and in Washington DC.
Privacy
In her statement, Ms Hill called the publication of nude photographs without her consent illegal and said she is “currently pursuing all legal options”.
“Having private photos of personal moments weaponised against me has been an appalling invasion of my privacy.”
Ms Hill ousted a Republican incumbent to win her suburban Los Angeles district in 2018, when a historic wave of Democratic women candidates swept the party to power in the House.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi took the young Californian under her wing, naming her vice chairwoman of the House oversight and reform committee, a plum position usually reserved for higher-ranking members on a panel that has played a key role in the impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump. – Guardian News and Media 2019