A northwest Alabama deputy who plans to run for sheriff said he had no choice to resign after being pressured by the incumbent.

Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Deputy John Randall McCrary said he resigned his job of 11 years after initially agreeing to go on leave without pay at the request of Sheriff Rick Singleton, who McCrary plans to oppose next election.

“I had to (resign) so I could go to work and provide for my family,” he told the TimesDaily, a Florence newspaper. “I couldn’t do that on leave.”

Singleton, who confirmed that McCrary resigned, said having a subordinate planning to oppose him for re-election was disruptive to the department. He said he had the legal right to tell McCrary to go on leave or quit.

McCrary unsuccessfully sought the office as a Democrat in 2014, the year Singleton was first elected. He said he plans to qualify as a Republican this time.