Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-IN) on Wednesday said she didn’t extend Rep. Thomas Massie‘s (R-KY) ex-girlfriend’s employment in her office because of “concerning conduct.”
Massie’s former girlfriend, Cynthia West, came out with allegations against the Kentucky congressman, claiming he offered her $5,000 to drop a wrongful termination complaint against his close friend and ally, Spartz.
In her statement, Spartz denied having heard of any such payment and defended Massie as a “defender of women’s rights.”
“Rep. Spartz has never heard of an alleged $5,000 settlement proposal — or any other settlement proposal — by Rep. Massie regarding allegations Ms. West brought against Rep. Spartz’s office,” her office said in a statement, adding that a video posted by West was the first time she had heard of a payment. “On a personal level, Rep. Spartz considers Thomas Massie to be one of the strongest supporters of women in Congress and a defender of women’s rights among her GOP colleagues. Rep. Spartz has seen him in action.”
The statement went on to dispute West’s claims that she was “terminated” after her and Massie ended their relationship, and that she was offered a separate settlement of $60,000 that required her to sign a nondisclosure agreement. West had claimed Massie landed her the job in Spartz’s office so she could spend more time with him in Washington, D.C.
“Ms. West was not terminated by our office; rather, her temporary employment was not extended beyond 90 days due to concerning conduct by Ms. West,” the statement said. “A few months later, Ms. West brought allegations against Rep. Spartz’s office, which Rep. Spartz denied and refused to settle during the pre-filing period.”
“Recently, due to delays and other circumstances in this case, Rep. Spartz was willing to reconsider settlement discussions in order to save taxpayer money and mitigate disruptions to the operation of the office. At no point did Rep. Spartz try to force Ms. West into a non-disclosure agreement,” her office added.
Spartz said she would be “happy” to disclose any documents relating to West’s allegations and employment.
West had claimed she was fired from Spartz’s office for raising concerns about what she called a toxic work environment, as well as Spartz hiring a noncitizen for a district director role and involvement in Ukrainian elections.
Spartz has a reputation for being one of the “worst bosses” on Capitol Hill, with the highest turnover rate among House members from 2001-2024, according to LegiStorm. She is in her third term in Congress.
Massie denied West’s allegations in a statement Wednesday, framing it as a political attack ahead of the Republican primary on May 19, in which Massie faces a GOP challenger backed by President Donald Trump.
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“It’s sad that a week before this election people are making false and unsubstantiated allegations about me in an obvious attempt to influence the outcome of this election,” Massie said. “All of the claims of inappropriate conduct are false. I’ve never offered anyone money in exchange for their silence. I report all of my farm income, including cash, to the IRS. There are no ethics claims filed against me, nor have there ever been any claims filed against me in my 14 years in office. I have consulted legal counsel and we are considering all options.”
West denied coordinating with Trump or Massie’s primary challenger, Ed Gallrein, and said she decided to speak publicly because she resented Massie’s calls for transparency regarding the Epstein files.