Missouri governor to step down amid sex, fundraising scandals
(Reuters) - Missouri Governor Eric Greitens on Tuesday said he would resign from office this week, avoiding a potential impeachment he faced after he became embroiled in separate sexual misconduct and political fundraising scandals.
Greitens called an afternoon press conference after an unfavorable ruling earlier in the day in his computer tampering trial related to allegations he obtained and transmitted a donor list from a military veterans charity he founded in 2007 without the charity’s consent to aid his political fundraising, according to local media.
“I will let the fairness of this process be judged by history ... I will always be a fighter for the people of Missouri,” Greitens told reporters after saying he would resign effective Friday.
The Republican-controlled Missouri General Assembly on May 18 began a special session in Jefferson City, Missouri, the state capital, to consider what disciplinary steps to take against the first-term Republican governor, including impeachment, after hearing the recommendations of a special House of Representatives investigative panel.
Reporting by Ian Simpson in Washington and Ben Klayman in Detroit; Editing by Marguerita Choy