Alabama Republican Gov. Robert Bentley, MD, resigned Monday evening amid a controversy involving allegations he had an affair with a senior aide and violated several state campaign finance laws, according to WBRC News.
Here are seven things to know about former Gov. Bentley's resignation and time in office.
1. The former governor was arrested and booked into Montgomery County jail Monday afternoon. He was charged with failing to file a major contribution report and knowingly converting campaign contributions to personal use, according to the report.
2. Former Gov. Bentley reportedly entered into a plea agreement with the state and will be required to pay a fine plus court costs, reimburse his campaign fund and surrender all remaining campaign funds to the state, according to the report. As per the plea agreement, he will not serve any jail time.
3. In addition to the fines, a judge ordered the former governor to serve 100 hours of voluntary community service as a physician and stated former Gov. Bentley will never again be able to run for state office. He must also waive his rights to his state retirement benefits, according to the report.
4. Lieutenant Governor Kay Ivey was sworn in as Alabama's 54th governor just after 6 p.m. Monday evening.
5. Allegations regarding the former governor's alleged affair with senior aide Rebekah Mason first broke March 2016, according to NBC News. Both former Gov. Bentley and Ms. Mason denied engaging in a physical relationship. Audio recordings from 2014 detailing their alleged affair were leaked to the media last month.
6. The state ethic's commission said April 5 there was "probable cause" the former governor violated state ethics and campaign finance laws, and launched an investigation, according to the report.
7. Prior to his resignation, state officials had scheduled impeachment hearings to remove former Gov. Bentley from office. Since he voluntarily stepped down, officials will not continue with the impeachment hearings, according to the report.