Ben Affleck Is Really Glad That He Never Ended Up Running For Congress

    " I have a feeling she would have cleaned my clock."

    Remember that time Ben Affleck almost ran for Congress?

    A closeup of Ben

    In 2018, there was an interest in the actor launching a congressional campaign to represent Massachusetts' 7th Congressional District.

    A closeup of Ben

    Looking back, Ben says that he's glad he didn't run — and is pretty certain current Rep. Ayanna Pressley would have totally beaten him.

    Rep. Ayanna Pressley smiles while sitting in a congressional meeting

    "People wanted me to run against [former Rep. Michael] Capuano in the, you know, the old Tip O'Neill district," Ben told the Boston Globe.

    A closeup of Ben

    He continued, "[Rep. Pressley] probably would have beat my [expletive], so I'm glad I didn't run. Even though she's from Ohio, I have a feeling she would have cleaned my clock."

    A closeup of Ben

    Ben noted that his decision not to run stemmed from his experience campaigning for John Kerry in 2004, when he learned more about the life of a congressperson.

    Ben shakes hands with John

    "I did a lot of campaigning for John Kerry, because I liked him; the Democratic National Convention was in Boston; I felt strongly about gay marriage; and I felt George Bush and the war in Iraq was wrong," Ben explained.

    Ben listens in while John stands next to him and speaks

    He added, "But I didn't want to run for Congress. I looked at the life of people in Congress and it was a constant process of glad-handing, begging for money and being beholden to people. It's so depressing. I thought it was miserable and corrupt and ugly."

    Ben speaks during a campaign event

    Instead, Ben chose to start the Eastern Congo Initiative, an advocacy and grant-making nonprofit dedicated to creating a successful society in eastern Congo.

    "We’ve given away $20 million to Congolese community-based organizations in one of the poorest places in the world and I’ve been there 15 times. That’s what I do," Ben concluded.