Nolan West, a Republican state House candidate who posted about lynching and tyranny, has resigned from his job at the Minnesota House, according to a House official.

West, of Blaine, was a legislative assistant for the representative he is running to replace in House District 37B.

On the day before the 2008 election, West had posted on Facebook that “It’s lynching time,” and also posted that he understands the need for a tyrant and criticized former President Lincoln several times. The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party had collected the posts and shared them publicly this week.

Both House Speaker Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, and Minnesota Republican Party chair Keith Downey condemned the postings.

Kelly Knight, director of human resources for the Minnesota House, said West’s resignation from his legislative job was effective on Wednesday.

In a statement this week, West said: “I apologize for posting insensitive material, I’ve taken those posts down because they do not reflect who I am or what I believe.”

Updated to correct the date of the 2008 election.