Florida GOP censures Christian Ziegler, cuts salary to $1 in rape investigation
The Florida GOP on Sunday censuredChair Christian Ziegler amid sexual assault allegations and reduced his salary to $1, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported.
“The 40-member board is expected to hold a meeting next month to consider whether to remove Ziegler as chair,” the report stated.
The censure comes after allegations were brought by a woman who says she had a previous consensual sexual encounter that included Ziegler and his wife, according to a Sarasota Police Department search warrant affidavit reported on by the Orlando Sentinel.
The affidavit states the woman told Sarasota police detectives she had agreed to have a sexual encounter with Ziegler and his wife on Oct. 2 but canceled when she learned Bridget was unable to go.
FILE – Bridget Ziegler speaks at the Moms for Liberty meeting in Philadelphia, July 1, 2023. A Florida school board is scheduled to consider whether to seek the resignation of a co-founder of the conservative Moms for Liberty group, who is embroiled in the fallout of a sexual assault investigation into her husband, the Republican Party state chairman. The Sarasota County School Board cannot oust Ziegler outright from the panel but was set to vote Tuesday, Dec. 12 on a resolution requesting that she step down. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, file) APAP
She told police she opened her door to walk her dog and Ziegler entered her apartment and sexually assaulted her, according to the affidavit.
The Sarasota County School Board formally called on his wife, Moms for Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler to resign, on Tuesday, the Miami Herald reported.
In a 4-to-1 vote, the school board signed off on a resolution requesting that Bridget Ziegler voluntarily step down from the post that she’s held for nearly a decade. Ziegler was the only member to oppose the measure.