Florida House candidate who lied about college graduation drops out of race

Melissa Howard, candidate for a Florida state House seat, has decided to withdraw from the election after admitting to lying about her college credentials. (Facebook)

The Florida state House candidate who admitted to lying about her college degree has reportedly dropped out of the race.

Melissa Howard, a Republican, faced questions about her academic credentials when she posted a copy of what she said were her college transcripts on Facebook and sent a photo of her supposed diploma to media outlets.

However, a lawyer for Miami University questioned the diploma’s authenticity, telling the Sarasota Herald-Tribune that it did not match those issued in 1994 or 1996, the years she claimed she graduated.

Howard eventually admitted that she did not actually graduate from the university in Oxford, Ohio.

“I made a mistake in saying that I completed my degree. What I did was wrong and set a bad example for someone seeking public service,” Howard said Monday. She remained adamant about staying in the race.

Yet a day later, she reversed course and told the Herald-Tribune that she is dropping out of the race.

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“I have come to the realization that the right thing to do for my community is to withdraw from the race,” Howard told the newspaper. “I will do so today.”

“I have come to the realization that the right thing to do for my community is to withdraw from the race.”

— Melissa Howard

“I made a terrible error in judgement. I am thankful for everyone who gave so much toward my success, and I am deeply sorry,” she continued.

Her primary opponent, Air Force veteran Tommy Gregory, said he spoke to Howard and wished her the best.

“She apologized for what she did and for the rancor in this campaign and offered her full support for my candidacy,” Gregory said in a Facebook post.

Despite Howard’s promise to withdraw from the race, it’s too late to get her name off the ballot ahead of the Aug. 28 primary. Vote by mail ballots were sent out a month ago, and about 20,000 Republican votes have already been cast.

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But Sarasota County GOP chairman Joe Gruters told The Associated Press that she made the right decision in dropping out of the race.

“I can’t imagine that voters would have given her a pass on this, but we will never know,” Gruters said. “This is a good example for everybody, that if something is in their background, A, be prepared for it to come up, and B, the cover-up is always worse than what happened.”

Aside from the discrepancies about the diploma – which had the wrong administrators’ signature and degree, according to the university’s lawyer – Howard was also accused of lying about her grade from the National Rifle Association. She posted about an A rating from the pro-gun organization on Facebook, according to the Herald-Tribune. However, Marion Hammer, a former NRA president who now leads the group's lobbying efforts in Florida, said Howard actually received a B grade.

Howard did not address that accusation.

Fox News’ Matt Richardson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.