From staff and A.P. reports

WASHINGTON—Yet another anti-gay Republican politician is in the middle of a sex scandal.

After a drunk-driving arrest led to U.S. Rep. Vito Fossella’s (R-N.Y.) confession that he fathered a child in an extramarital affair, Fossella faced growing public calls for his resignation last weekend.

In admitting the affair and a secret child May 8, one week after his drunk-driving arrest, the Republican lawmaker indicated he planned to stay in Congress for months to come, but there are signs he could be out much sooner: House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) pointedly said he expected Fossella to make a decision about his future last weekend but as of May 12, Fossella had made no announcement.

A preliminary court hearing on his DWI charge was postponed the morning of May 12.

Fossella’s problems started May 1 when police stopped him for running a red light last and charged him with drunken driving. The arrest fueled scrutiny after a woman, Laura Fay, went to the jail in Alexandria, Va., to get Fossella out of custody. That led to questions by reporters and eventually to revelations of an affair with Fay, a former Air Force officer, and a three-year-old daughter with her.

Fossella, the only Republican congressman from New York City, has been a staunchly anti-gay member of Congress. He has voted for the Marriage Protection Amendment to ban gays and lesbians from marrying, voted to prohibit joint adoptions by gay and lesbian couples and voted to strip federal housing funds from the city of San Francisco because of its domestic partnership law.

Fossella even refuses to attend family functions if his openly lesbian sister, Victoria, attends with her partner.

The Staten Island Advance, his district’s most local newspaper, declared May 9 that Fossella “is finished” and must resign immediately.

If Fossella steps down and that resignation took effect before July 1, New York’s Democratic Gov. David Paterson would have the option of calling a special election to fill the seat for the rest of the year.

That would force the financially struggling House GOP campaign committee to plow a large amount of money into an extra election in New York City, one of the most expensive places in the nation to campaign.

If Fossella made his resignation effective after July 1, then there would be no special election, the seat would be empty for the remainder of the year and the normal primary and general election process would take place.

Fossella’s seat was already being targeted by Democrats. Two politicians—Steven Harrison, who lost to Fossella two years ago, and New York City Councilman Dominic Recchia Jr.—are running for the Democratic nomination, with the primary election scheduled for Sept. 9. Several Republicans are already rumored to be looking into succeeding Fossella as the Republican nominee.