Nebraska Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, who vowed to appeal his conviction of three felonies related to an illegal $30,000 campaign contribution, said he would resign from the House effective Thursday. Before the indictment last October, Fortenberry was the senior Republican on the House subcommittee that oversees USDA and FDA spending.
“Due to the difficulties of my current circumstances, I can no longer effectively serve. I will resign from Congress effective March 31,” wrote Fortenberry, 61, in a letter to colleagues. A federal court jury in Los Angeles returned a guilty verdict against Fortenberry last Thursday night. Political leaders from both parties, including Nebraska Gov. Peter Ricketts, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, urged the nine-term representative to resign.
Nebraska is a politically conservative state and Republicans were expected to retain their hold on the 1st House District in eastern Nebraska. State Sen. Mike Flood was the likely Republican nominee for the November general election, said NPR. A special election would fill Fortenberry’s seat for the remainder of the current term.
Sentencing was scheduled for June 28. Each of the charges, one count of scheming to falsify and conceal material facts and two counts of making false statements to federal investigators, carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. House Republican rules require party members to step aside from committee assignments if indicted on a felony with a potential sentence of two years or more.
“After learning of illegal contributions to his campaign, the congressman repeatedly chose to conceal the violations of federal law to protect his job, his reputation and his close associates,” said U.S Attorney Tracy Wilkison. “The lies in this case threatened the integrity of the American electoral system and were designed to prevent investigators from learning the true source of campaign funds.”