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Pa. House Speaker Sam Smith To Retire

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania House Speaker Sam Smith says he won't run for another term and will retire when his 14th term ends Nov. 30.

Smith said Tuesday that his heart isn't in the job anymore and that he can't give his constituents his full commitment any longer. The 58-year-old Smith had told friends and associates in private a day earlier.

Smith's decision will end his service as the top state House official after four years. Smith, a Republican, is facing a potentially tough challenge in his 66th District seat in northwestern Pennsylvania's Jefferson County.

Smith became speaker in 2011 after nearly eight years as the House Republican floor leader, serving through a time when a corruption investigation by the state attorney general's office resulted in jail terms for five former top House lawmakers.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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