Pressure mounts on Sanford to resign

COLUMBIA, S.C., Sept. 9 (UPI) -- A majority of South Carolina House Republicans have joined other state officials in calling for Gov. Mark Sanford to resign because of his extramarital affair.

At least 60 of the state's 73 House Republicans have signed a letter urging Sanford to resign, one day after Republican House Speaker Bobby Harrell publicly urged the Republican governor to step down, The (S.C.) State reported Wednesday. A majority of state Senate Republicans signed a similar letter in June.

"Governor you have lost the support of legislators who have supported you through thick and thin," Deputy Majority Leader Bruce Bannister said in a statement.

Harrell said Tuesday the governor needs to resign "for the good of our state," The (S.C.) State reported.

"What has become clear is that Governor Sanford's issues will continue to dominate our state as long as he remains in office," Harrell said in a news release.

Sanford has refused repeated calls for his resignation. Some House members have said if the governor does not resign he should be impeached.

The State Ethics Commission is investigating Sanford, who this year acknowledged the extramarital affair after returning to South Carolina from a secret trip to Argentina. The investigation is expected to take as much as eight weeks to complete.