Secretary of State Shelley Steps Down
SAN FRANCISCO — Buffeted by investigations into his campaign finances and official conduct, Secretary of State Kevin Shelley announced his resignation Friday, saying he could no longer adequately run California's elections office.
One of the state's highest-ranking officials who only two years ago was considered a rising star in Democratic politics, a somber Shelley was near tears as he faced television cameras.
For months, he had been dogged by federal and state criminal inquiries and scathing audits of his financial management and treatment of employees:
* A federal grand jury is probing his acceptance of campaign contributions from people and companies that received money from a grant he helped arrange in 2000 while serving as a state Assembly member.
* The state attorney general is examining his alleged acceptance of a private campaign contribution on state property, his alleged use of state staff for political work and his hiring of the son of a campaign supporter.
* Federal regulators are conducting a special audit of his handling of election reform funds issued under the Help America Vote Act.
* And a state audit of the same accounts concluded that Shelley's office mismanaged the money and used it to pay some contractors to attend partisan political events.
As the charges piled up over the past six months, lawmakers and newspaper editorials began calling for Shelley's resignation -- despite his consistent denials of deliberate wrongdoing. Finally, he could no longer resist.
"During the past several weeks and days, it has become clear to me that the tides of this storm are overtaking this office's ability to function effectively," Shelley said, standing outside the home he recently mortgaged to help pay legal bills.
"Therefore, it is with deepest regret that I resign the office of secretary of state effective March 1."
Shelley is the first state constitutional officer to resign since Republican Insurance Commissioner Chuck Quackenbush quit five years ago amid allegations that he had used his public office for political purposes.
Shelley informed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger just before his announcement. In a statement, the Republican governor said he would move quickly to name a replacement to "ensure that the important duties of the office of secretary of state [are] carried out in a manner that instills public trust and confidence."
