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The governor of Puerto Rico, Ricardo Rosselló, announced his resignation after several days of mbad demonstrations in the United States.
Mr. Rosselló, who had insisted only Sunday to stay, said that he would continue to work until August 2 to allow an orderly transition.
He has been at the center of a text message group scandal that has already led two senior officials to resign.
Disclosed messages revealed badist, profane and homophobic comments.
The conversation, which contained 880 pages of exchanges between the governor and 11 male allies, was leaked on July 13 and resulted in days of protests outside the governor's palace in San Juan.
What did Governor Rosselló say?
He recorded a video statement broadcast Wednesday night.
"I am announcing that I will resign from the governorship beginning Friday, August 2 at 5 pm," said Rosselló.
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Ricardo Rosselló announced his resignation in a televised statement
"I think that continuing to hold this position would make the success of my success difficult," he added.
The announcement of Mr. Rosselló triggered celebrations in the streets of the capital San Juan.
On Monday, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to demand the immediate resignation of Mr. Rosselló.
The 40-year-old governor is the leader of the New Progressive Party, a Puerto Rican political party defending the American state.
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The crowd celebrated the resignation in the streets of the capital San Juan
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The demonstrators had called on Rosselló to withdraw after the discussions that had been leaked as well as allegations of government corruption
Mr. Rosselló will be replaced by Wanda Vázquez, secretary of justice for the Caribbean island territory of the United States.
Ms. Vázquez was next in the constitution because the secretary of state, who would have succeeded the governor, resigned last week as part of the texting scandal.
On Sunday, in an effort to appease the protesters, he said he would not run again next year.
"I hear you," Rosselló said in a video on Facebook. "I made mistakes and I apologized."
"I know that to apologize is not enough," he added.
The Rosselló announcement comes just hours after the Puerto Rican House Speaker announced that legislators were considering launching impeachment proceedings to remove the governor.
His ousting is seen by many as both a repudiation of the governor and a rejection of dysfunction and corruption in the island.
What are the secret messages?
Several texts evoke the victims of Hurricane Maria, who devastated the island in 2017 and could have caused more than 4,000 deaths.
In one case, Rosselló criticized former New York city council chair Melissa Mark-Viverito, saying people should "beat up this whore".
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When the island's finance official wrote that he was "salivating to slaughter" the mayor of San Juan, Mr. Rosselló replied, "You would do me a great favor."
What was the reaction to the scandal?
Local newspaper El Nuevo Día called on the governor to resign in his Monday editorial.
"Puerto Rico is expressed not only as a strong voice, broad and united, but also as the right voice," the editorial said. "With a gesture of nobility and humility, Governor, it is time to listen to people.You must resign.
The mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulin Cruz, said in a message published Monday on Twitter: "They can not deny it: the power is in the street".
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Singer Ricky Martin, who was targeted in the secret messages, was among the people who demanded the resignation of the governor, as well as the creator of Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and the star of the reggaeton, Bad Bunny.
"They made fun of our dead, they made fun of women, they made fun of the LGBT community, they made fun of people with intellectual and physical disabilities, they made fun of obesity. is enough, it can not be, "said Martin in a video on Twitter.
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Protesters gathered to walk on one of the busiest roads on the island
The political crisis of the island has also made headlines throughout the American continent. Many echoed the New York Times editorial board, which wrote that the "partisan severity and intransigence" revealed by the messages served as an exorbitant source for the long-suffering island, "effectively wiping out a long and deadly wound ".
"The Puerto Rican people have no use for the little political quarrel," writes The New York Times. "Their territory is struggling under the weight of corruption, incompetence and indifference from the government, their leaders at all levels have failed, they lack patience, they deserve better."
US President Donald Trump had also called on the governor to resign.
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