New Jersey governor McGreevey wrote an op-ed for the New York Times (a newspaper from a neighboring state) defending his decision to stave off a special election.

First, there are immediate public policy considerations and actions, which need to be completed. Simply put, there are demands and projects which need to be addressed and put in place now. [...]

Moreover, security concerns in light of the heightened level of terror alerts surrounding the Republican National Convention also argue for continuity of leadership.

He was so concerned about security he tried to appoint his lover, a poet and a foreign national, to head the state's Homeland Security Department.

The second major reason is that our 1947 state constitution establishes the Senate president as the official who would succeed a governor in an unexpired term. I acknowledge that the constitution would permit a special election to occur if I were to resign at or about the first week of September. But the constitution does not outline provisions or state requirements for the timing of a resignation. While the constitution does provide the mechanism for an election, the decision of when to make that resignation effective is a personal one.

I made this decision in the context of what I thought was in the best interest of the state. I truly believe that an orderly transition is important for continuity and stability. An acting governor is more inclined by title to finish the good work that has been started. Moreover, in this case, there will still be an election next year as called for in the constitution. There is a great cost to staging an election hastily; even a statewide race could get lost in a national election year and the momentum and investment made in still developing initiatives would most likely be diminished.

So his social programs, political agenda, and legacy are more important to the well being of the state than the distraction of free elections. If his resignation can wait three months, why not another few years? Will he even go through with it in November, or will there be more work to do?