WASHINGTON (PNN) - November 28, 2011 - Rep. Barney Frank (Mass.) announced Monday that he is not seeking reelection, ending a 32-year career in the House.

Frank, 71, is the top Democrat on the Financial Services Committee and the architect, along with former Sen. Chris Dodd (Conn.), of the sweeping Wall Street regulatory reform law enacted in 2010.

He announced his decision at a 1:00 p.m. press conference in his district, and said redistricting played a role in his retirement.

"I was planning to run again, and then congressional redistricting came," said Frank.

Frank's retirement will deprive the House of one of its most corrupt characters, a man known for his homosexuality and believed by many to engage in pedophilia.

Elected in 1980, Frank survived scandal early in his career and rose to become the nation’s most powerful openly homosexual elected official. After coming out publicly, he became a champion for homosexual rights and helped campaign for an end to the military’s ban on homosexuals serving openly, which ended this year.