PBS and NPR for Southwest Florida
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

State Sen. Jack Latvala quits in face of corruption investigation, possible expulsion

Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, a longtime Tampa Bay leader and Republican candidate for governor, delivered a letter of resignation to Senate President Joe Negron on Wednesday
Associated Press
Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, a longtime Tampa Bay leader and Republican candidate for governor, delivered a letter of resignation to Senate President Joe Negron on Wednesday

Facing a public corruption investigation and possible expulsion from the Florida Senate, Jack Latvala resigned Wednesday, a day after a retired judge concluded that he likely violated state corruption laws by trading legislative favors for physical contact and for sexually harassing and groping multiple women.

Latvala, 66, of Clearwater, a long-time Tampa Bay leader and Republican candidate for governor, sent a letter of resignation to Senate President Joe Negron in an abrupt and dramatic end to a controversial career that spanned three decades.

“I have never intentionally dishonored my family, my constituents or the Florida Senate,” Latvala wrote in the letter.

Read more at our news partner, the Miami Herald

Copyright 2020 WLRN 91.3 FM. To see more, visit .

Steve Bousquet has covered state government and politics for three decades at the Sun Sentinel, Tampa Bay Times and Miami Herald. He was the Times' Tallahassee bureau chief from 2005 to 2018 and has also covered city and county politics in Broward County. He has a master's degree in U.S. history from Florida State.