Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski announces his resignation Thursday during a news conference.

ALLENTOWN — Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski announced his resignation Thursday a week after jurors convicted him on charges that he traded city contracts for campaign cash.

Pawlowski said he will step down at 5 p.m. Friday from the job he’s held a dozen years.

The 52-year-old Democrat has been under intense pressure to resign since jurors convicted him last week of 47 counts. But he clung to office, showing up at City Hall, tweeting about snow preparations and economic development, and asking supporters to mount a letter-writing campaign to try to persuade the judge to impose a lenient sentence.

Pawlowski, who had served under a cloud since the FBI raided City Hall in 2015, did not apologize for the crimes for which he was convicted.

“To the residents of Allentown, I want to say I’m so very sorry that you and the city had to endure this long, drawn-out saga,” the mayor said at a news conference in front of his home.

Prosecutors say Pawlowski strong-armed city vendors to contribute to his failed campaigns for governor and U.S. Senate, orchestrating a scheme to rig city contracts for legal, engineering, technology and construction work. He denied wrongdoing, but a jury convicted him of all but seven counts, including bribery, attempted extortion, and lying to the FBI.

Pawlowski, who remains free pending sentencing, faces years in prison.

Reading from prepared remarks, Pawlowski said he was disappointed and saddened by the jury’s verdict and planned to appeal. He did not take questions. Pawlowski is resigning just over two months into his fourth term.