Issa will not seek re-election after serving ninth term
By KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press
Jan 10, 2018 10:34 AM CST
FILE - In this Dec. 9, 2014 file photo, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Issa says he will not seek re-election after serving out his ninth term in Congress. Issa’s decision continues a string of GOP lawmakers who have decided to retire rather than take on what would...   (Associated Press)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of California says he will not seek re-election after serving out his ninth term in Congress.

Issa's decision continues a string of GOP lawmakers who have decided to retire rather than take on what would be a difficult re-election battle.

Democrats had made defeating Issa one of their top priorities in the midterm elections.

Issa is a longtime nemesis of the Democrats and then-President Barack Obama. He once served as chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and led investigations of the IRS and its treatment of conservative groups and Benghazi.