Days after announcing he planned to keep his job as an independent, the M-L-A elected as a Liberal for the Boundary-Similkameen riding has withdrawn from the race.

John Slater is not talking to media, but he has released a statement blaming the "politics of personal destruction" for his decision.

He says the past couple weeks have been 'an extremely emotional roller coaster ride for me' and 'this brutal experience has shown me how tough smear --and fear-- based politics can be on people and their families.'

He also says, 'it is too high a price to pay, at least for me.'

Last week, high-profile Liberals claimed Slater was no longer a desirable candidate for the party because he had personal problems. 

He responded by asking CKNW's Bill Good.... "since when did the BC Liberals ever turf an M-L-A for having one beer too many?"