Eliot Spitzer has resigned as New York’s governor just two days after it was reported he was a client in a high-end prostitution ring. At a news conference Wednesday, Spitzer stood next to his wife Silda to announce his departure.

Eliot Spitzer: “I go forward with the belief, as others have said, that as human beings our greatest glory consists not in never falling but in rising every time we fall. As I leave public life, I will first do what I need to do to help and heal myself and my family. Then I will try once again, outside of politics, to serve the common good and to move toward the ideals and solutions which I believe can build a future of hope and opportunity for us and for our children.”

Federal prosecutors have yet to file any charges against Spitzer amidst reports he’s negotiating a plea bargain. Lieutenant Governor David Paterson will be sworn in as Spitzer’s replacement on Monday. Paterson will become New York’s first African American governor and the first blind chief executive in the nation’s history.