Rep. Elijah Cummings hospitalized for knee infection

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings had a medical procedure on his knee Friday to drain a bacterial infection, his office said, hours after his wife announced she was dropping out of the Democratic primary for governor because of “personal considerations.”

The congressman’s office said doctors drained the infection in a minor procedure. He was admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital Dec. 29.

“He is resting comfortably and expects a full recovery,” his office said in a news release.

When he was first admitted last week, Cummings was being treated with antibiotics before it was determined the procedure was necessary, said Trudy Perkins, a spokeswoman for Cummings.

The 66-year-old leading Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee had a heart procedure last year. He was hospitalized for a few days in May for a transarterial aortic valve replacement to treat aortic stenosis. He returned to Capitol Hill in September, after working in his district office in Baltimore.

His office announced the latest medical procedure on the same day as his wife, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, announced she was suspending her campaign for Maryland governor in a crowded Democratic primary.

“Unfortunately, due to personal considerations, I am suspending my bid for governor of Maryland,” she wrote in a statement. “I thank all of the people across the country who have supported my campaign and those whom I have met on the campaign trail who also fervently believe that we can and must do better for the people of Maryland.”

The announcement by her campaign did not provide details on why she dropped out of the race, and the campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment about why the campaign was suspended.

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This story has been corrected to say the congressman’s medical procedure was announced after his wife announced she was suspending her campaign.