The Florida Republican Party removed party Chairman Christian Ziegler in a vote on Monday. He is currently under investigation for an allegation involving rape.
Ziegler has denied the accusation, and he has not been charged, but the Sarasota County Police Department is investigating the allegation. Ziegler confirmed the sexual encounter with the woman took place, but he claimed it was consensual.
Florida GOP Vice Chairman Evan Power was elected as the new chairman. He touts the support of key Florida conservatives, including Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).
“I’m proud to have the support of such a diverse group of Republicans,” Power said before the vote, according to Bay News 9. “I am looking forward to unifying the party and moving it forward.”
The vote comes after an unnamed woman claimed Ziegler raped her at her apartment in October after she attempted to cancel a scheduled meetup with him. The woman was previously in a joint relationship with both Ziegler and his wife, Bridget Ziegler.
The woman claimed that when she found out Bridget Ziegler would not be at the meetup, she attempted to cancel it, but the GOP leader showed up anyway and raped her.
The controversy around the allegations has caused Christian Ziegler to lose the support of key conservative figures. DeSantis has claimed that Ziegler is “innocent until proven guilty,” but the governor urged him to resign before the vote.
“I think he should step aside,” DeSantis said, according to Bay News 9. “I think he should tend to that. He’s innocent till proven guilty. But we just can’t have a party chair that is under that type of scrutiny.”
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The Sarasota County school board has also called for Bridget Ziegler to step down from her position on the board after she confirmed the three-way relationship in a search warrant. But Bridget Ziegler, who is also a co-founder of Moms for Liberty, has refused to resign.
Bridget Ziegler is not facing any sexual misconduct or rape allegations, but she has previously espoused traditional family values.
