Florida GOP Demands Chairman Resign Amid Rape Investigation

Facts

• Florida’s Republican Party on Sunday during an emergency meeting censured Chairman Christian Ziegler and demanded his resignation while police investigate a rape accusation against him.¹
• The Sarasota Police Department is investigating accusations from a woman who had previously engaged in a consensual relationship with Ziegler and his wife, Bridget Ziegler. The accuser claims that Ziegler raped her in early October.²
• The unnamed woman told the police that after a scheduled meeting between her and the Zieglers was canceled, Christian Ziegler showed up at her apartment and assaulted her.³
• Christian Ziegler can be seen arriving at the woman’s house on surveillance video, but he claims their intercourse was consensual. He has not been charged with a crime. While Florida's GOP leadership voted to remove him, it voted 39-0 against conducting a special investigation into the allegations.⁴
• Lee County GOP chairman Michael Thompson confirmed Ziegler was censured, had his salary reduced to $1, and had reimbursement of his expenses revoked after the meeting.⁵
• In addition, Bridget Ziegler, the co-founder of the conservative Moms for Liberty group, has been asked by the Sarasota County School Board to resign her position on that board.⁶

Sources: ¹PBS NewsHour, ²NBC, ³Business Insider, ⁴CNN, ⁵The hill and ⁶USA Today.

Narratives

• Republican narrative, as provided by Washington examiner. Although former Pres. Trump has yet to weigh in on Ziegler’s future, it’s probably best he step aside or be removed so he doesn’t serve as a distraction in the crucial state of Florida. With pretty much every Republican heavyweight telling him to go, Ziegler should take the hint. Allegations this serious cannot be taken lightly, and his resignation is best for the party and the victim.
• Democratic narrative, as provided by New York Times. The hypocrisy of the Zieglers seemingly knows no bounds. Beyond the criminal charges — which should be at minimum worth removal of Christian Ziegler from his post — their acknowledged interactions with this woman are coming to light at a time when Bridget Ziegler is actively pushing policies that are discriminatory against the LGBTQ+ community. If Republicans are hoping this wouldn’t be a distraction, it’s too late.