Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings hospitalized, wife halts Maryland gubernatorial campaign

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Ga., sent a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions in April accusing the Justice Department of using political bias when hiring immigration judges. (AP)

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md. underwent an operation to treat a knee infection at a Baltimore hospital, his office said Friday, hours after his wife suspended her campaign for Maryland governor.

Cummings' office said doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital drained the infection in a minor procedure. He was admitted to the 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.

Cummings, 66, is the leading Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. He was briefly hospitalized this past May to undergo a heart procedure, in which doctors replaced a transarterial aortic valve in order to treat aortic stenosis. He returned to Capitol Hill in September, after working in his district office in Baltimore.

Cummings' wife, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, said in a statement she was withdrawing from the June 26 Democratic primary due to "personal considerations." The announcement by her campaign did not provide details on why she dropped out of the race.

Maya Cummings' withdrawal leaves seven Democratic candidates vying to unseat Republican Gov. Larry Hogan in the November election.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.