Ben Affleck will not run for Senate

Actor-director Ben Affleck will not run for the Senate in Massachusetts, he announced late Monday.

“I love Massachusetts and our political process, but I am not running for office,” Affleck wrote on his Facebook page.

“Right now it's a privilege to spend my time working with Eastern Congo Initiative (ECI), supporting our veterans, drawing attention to the great many who go hungry in the U.S. everyday and using filmmaking to entertain and foster discussion about issues like our relationship to Iran.”

Affleck’s name had been mentioned as a candidate for the seat held by Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who was just nominated by President Obama to be the next secretary of State.

“We are about to get a great Secretary of State and there are some phenomenal candidates in Massachusetts for his Senate seat,” Affleck wrote. “I look forward to an amazing campaign.”

Affleck was on Capitol Hill last week to meet with members of Congress and testify before the House Armed Services Committee about the crisis in the Congo. Along with being a likely front-runner for Academy Award nominations next year, Affleck is a humanitarian who founded the Eastern Congo Initiative.

---