On Wednesday, Florida Republican Jack Latvala announced that he would resign from the state Senate in disgrace at the beginning on January. Latvala, a longtime legislator from the St. Petersburg area, looked like a strong candidate for governor until November, when multiple women accused him of sexual harassment.
The special master's report on the investigation against him was delivered to the Senate Rules Committee on Tuesday, and it was even worse for Latvala than almost anyone anticipated. Not only did the report feature several women describe unwanted touching by the senator, the special master referred the case for criminal investigation, saying that Latvala may have traded sexual favors for action on legislation. There was a good chance Latvala would have become the first senator in Florida history to be expelled, and he jumped before he could be pushed.
Latvala did not say whether he was dropping out of the race for governor, but it hardly matters now. The soon-to-be-former senator's resignation letter also did not express any contribution whatsoever. Latvala argued that his accusers were lying about him and if he made any mistakes, he just hadn’t "kept up with political correctness in my comments as well as I should have." The once-powerful senator gave his GOP colleagues the finger on the way out, writing, "If this is the process our Party and Senate leadership desires, then I have no interest in continuing to serve with you."