The ‘Love Gov’ is stepping down to avoid impeachment but was charged Monday with two counts of violating state campaign laws.
Alabama’s Governor Robert Bentley resigned amid allegations he tried to cover-up an adulterous affair with a former adviser and will be replaced by Lt. Gov. Kay Ivey, Bentley announced at a press conference Monday evening.
“I’ve always believed the honor of serving as your governor is a calling that God placed on my life,” Bentley said in announcing his resignation. “Though I have sometimes failed, I have always tried to live up to the high expectations that people place on the person who holds this esteemed office. There have been times that I have let you and our people down, and I’m sorry for that.”
He added, “I can no longer allow my family, my dear friends, my dedicated staff and cabinet to be subjected to the consequences that my past actions have brought on them.
“I want you to know, I love our people with all my heart.”
The Associated Press reported that Alabama’s Governor, Bentley first announced his resignation during a Cabinet meeting Monday afternoon.
A 74-year-old grandfather of six from Tuscaloosa who sometimes teaches Sunday school, Bentley has denied sleeping with Mason, a married mom nearly three decades younger than him. He also denies punishing the police officer who blew the whistle on their alleged adulterous affair. And he has asked God to forgive him.
Bentley’s decision to quit came after the Alabama Republican Party’s steering committee passed a resolution urging him to “resign immediately.”
