U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis is resigning from Congress as he mounts his bid to become Florida’s next governor.

DeSantis sent a letter to House Speaker Paul Ryan on Monday announcing his immediate resignation. The northeast Florida Republican said in his letter that he will be spending time campaigning and it would be “inappropriate” to accept a salary while he is running for governor.

DeSantis is locked in a tight battle against Democratic nominee and Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum. Republican Gov. Rick Scott is leaving office due to term limits and is running for the U.S. Senate.

.@RepJNunez and I had a great time kicking off our campaign together in Miami tonight at the Bay of Pigs Museum. Thanks for joining us @MarcoRubio! pic.twitter.com/bIbauPAKta

— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) September 11, 2018

From his website:

Ron DeSantis is the U.S. Representative for Florida’s Sixth District and is a candidate for Governor of Florida.  He is endorsed by President Donald Trump, Fox News’ Sean Hannity, and radio host Mark Levin.

While in Congress, he has led efforts to impose term limits on members of Congress, cut taxes, repeal ObamaCare, relocate America’s embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, assist veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress, prevent American tax dollars from being sent to Iran, combat radical Islamic terrorism, stop illegal immigration and defund sanctuary cities, and conduct oversight over agencies such as the IRS and Department of Justice, including the investigation into Uranium One, the use of the Clinton-funded Steele dossier against Donald Trump, and the failure to prosecute the criminal activity of terrorist group Hezbollah by Eric Holder’s DOJ.

A native Floridian with blue collar roots, Congressman DeSantis worked his way through Yale University, where he graduated with honors and was the captain of the varsity baseball team.  He also graduated with honors from Harvard Law School.  While at Harvard, he earned a commission in the US Navy as a JAG officer.  During his active duty service he supported operations at the terrorist detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and deployed to Iraq as an adviser to a US Navy SEAL commander in support of the SEAL mission in Fallujah, Ramadi and the rest of Al Anbar province.

His military decorations include the bronze star medal for meritorious service and the Iraq campaign medal. He has also served as a federal and military prosecutor.

He is married to Casey DeSantis, an Emmy award winning television host.  They have a daughter Madison and a son Mason.

https://youtu.be/zF-AHJpKzoM