Republican Rep. Ron DeSantis of Florida announced his resignation from Congress on Monday to focus on his Florida gubernatorial race.

“As the Republican nominee for Governor of Florida, it is clear to me that I will likely miss the vast majority of our remaining session days for this Congress,” DeSantis wrote in his resignation letter to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. “Under these circumstances, it would be inappropriate for me to accept a salary. In order to honor my principles and protect the taxpayer, I officially resign from the House of Representatives effective immediately.” (RELATED: Ron DeSantis Defends Himself Over Alleged Racist Comment)

DeSantis also requested that his resignation be retroactive so that he would not receive pay for the month of September.

“It has been an honor to serve the people of Florida’s Sixth Congressional District,” tweeted DeSantis.

It has been an honor to serve the people of Florida’s Sixth Congressional District. pic.twitter.com/j0SgILImyP — Ron DeSantis (@RepDeSantis) September 10, 2018

The Florida gubernatorial race has been contentious since DeSantis faced backlash mere hours after winning his state’s Republican nomination following a comment that was misconstrued to seemingly refer to the race of his opponent, Andrew Gillum. Despite DeSantis vehemently denouncing racism, the media has continued to portray him as a racist.

DeSantis and Gillum are neck and neck in the polls.

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