Stacey Dash drops out of congressional race

Actress and former Fox News contributor Stacey Dash is dropping out of the race for a U.S. congressional seat in California.

“I started this run with the intention to address the pressing issues in the district where I live,” Ms. Dash wrote in a statement to Cosmopolitan magazine. “I hoped, and remain hopeful, that I can assist people living here on the national level.

“My goal was, and remains, to improve the lives of people who have been forgotten for decades by the Democratic Party,” she said. “At this point, I believe that the overall bitterness surrounding our political process, participating in the rigors of campaigning, and holding elected office would be detrimental to the health and wellbeing of my family.”

Ms. Dash filed campaign documents with the Federal Election Commission on Feb. 26, running as a Republican in the race to unseat Democrat Rep. Nanette Barragán, who was elected to represent the 44th District in November.

The district, which includes the cities of Compton, Lynwood, San Pedro and Wilmington, has been represented by a Democrat since 2012 and overwhelmingly voted for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Ms. Dash’s statement to Cosmopolitan said the 44th District deserves better than what Democrats have been offering.

“My political positions have often been labeled as controversial,” she wrote. “But the real controversy is how decades of government corruption and political disempowerment have created a system where skyrocketing home prices, dirty needles in the streets, and long bus trips to other districts for jobs are somehow considered acceptable by the government officials representing the 44th District.

“The people living here deserve better,” Ms. Dash said. “I will continue to speak out about these and other problems facing this district, as well as the distractions that take the place of real change.”