A Republican Florida State House candidate who lied about having a college degree and posted a photo with the fraudulent diploma dropped out of the race Tuesday.
Melissa Howard, who was running for the 73rd District seat in Florida, confirmed to the the Sarasota Herald-Tribune that she was withdrawing her candidacy.
“I made a terrible error in judgment. I am thankful for everyone who gave so much toward my success, and I am deeply sorry,” Howard told the paper. The announcement came one day after Howard admitted that she lied about having her degree, but told the Florida news outlet that she would remain in the race.
Last week, another local media outlet, FLA news, reported that the Republican candidate’s claim that she graduated from Miami University of Ohio was untrue. Howard flew to Ohio and posted a photo on Facebook with her alleged diploma, to prove reports wrong.
The Miami University of Ohio’s general counsel, however, said the diploma was fake.
“The picture of the diploma shows that Melissa Fox received a Bachelor of Science in Marketing degree from Miami Univeristy on December 20, 1996,” a statement read. “We have no such record of a degree.”
