Rep. Bachmann says she won't run for re-election

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, a conservative firebrand, presidential candidate and favorite of tea party Republicans, said today she will not run for another term in the U.S. House.

Bachmann announced her decision in a video on her website.

"My decision was not influenced by any concerns about my being re-elected," Bachmann said. She narrowly won a fourth term in 2012 over Democrat Jim Graves, a hotel chain founder who is running again in 2014.

Bachmann also said, "This decision was not impacted in any way by the recent inquiries into the activities of my former presidential campaign." In January, a former Bachmann aide filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, claiming the candidate made improper payments to an Iowa state senator who was the state chairman of her 2012 presidential run. The aide, Peter Waldron, also accused Bachmann of other FEC violations.