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The pastor of a North Carolina Baptist church has resigned after controversy over allegations that he told members to “repent or resign” if they intended to vote for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in the last election.

Chan Chandler left his East Waynesville Baptist Church in Waynesville on May 10 after giving a brief statement, the Associated Press reported. “For me to remain now would only cause more hurt for me and my family,” said the 33-year-old minister, who had led the church for three years.

The Southern Baptist Convention’s public policy arm has withdrawn support for a bill that would allow religious institutions to endorse candidates without threatening their tax-exempt status.

The SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, once a vocal supporter of the bill, decided it could not affirm the latest version of the Houses of Worship Free Speech Restoration Act. Church-state separation advocates have voiced strong opposition in all three years the bill has appeared in the House of Representatives.