"It's a sad ending to what had been a brilliant political career. It certainly takes an enormous weight off the shoulders of the committee and of the House of Representatives and for that matter the whole legislature," said Rep. Arthur O'Neill, the Republican co-chairman of the state House Select Committee of Inquiry.

On Friday, the governor suffered a major setback when Connecticut's Supreme Court ruled that he must testify before the committee, which was just days away from deciding whether to recommend his impeachment.

He is a former chairman of the Republican Governors Association and was once rumored to be under consideration for positions in the Bush administration.

"Certainly, it's a historic moment for him and one I think he has spent a lot of time anguishing over," said Rell, 58.

During the committee hearings, the governor's lawyers criticized the investigation, arguing that the 10-member panel never set any standards for impeachment. Rowland fought the subpoena on the grounds it violated the separation of powers between the legislative and executive branches.

Senate Minority Leader Louis DeLuca, a Republican, said he spoke with the governor shortly after news leaked about the resignation. He quoted Rowland as saying: "I think it's reached the point that it's the right thing to do."

The governor remained in seclusion most of the day at the governor's residence in Hartford, fine-tuning his speech and receiving calls from supporters.

Dean Pagani, Rowland's former chief of staff and longtime spokesman, said Rowland understood that few lawmakers would have been willing to vote against impeachment.

"I don't think there was any way he could have survived, especially in a legislative election year," Pagani said.

The House committee postponed further testimony to await Rowland's expected resignation. Committee leaders said they probably would still issue a report on its investigation but not an impeachment recommendation.

In recent years, Connecticut has been rocked by scandals — two of them involving former mayors of Waterbury, the governor's hometown.

"This has been a long and painful process and with today's announcement we can begin to move forward and heal the wounds this scandal has inflicted upon our state," said GOP Sen. John Kissel.

The last U.S. governor to resign under pressure was Arizona's Fife Symington, who stepped down in 1997 after he was found guilty of defrauding lenders during his previous career as a real estate developer. The conviction was overturned on appeal.

Only seven governors in U.S. history have been impeached and removed from office. The last was Arizona's Republican Evan Mecham, a former car dealer who was impeached in 1988 on charges of trying to thwart an investigation into an alleged death threat made by a state official.

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Contributing: John Christoffersen, Laura Walsh.