Christian Ziegler: Republican chairman in Florida suspended amid rape allegation

The Republican Party of Florida has suspended its chairman and demanded his resignation as police investigate a sexual assault allegation against him.

Christian Ziegler is accused of raping a woman with whom he and his wife had a prior consensual sexual relationship.

Mr Ziegler has not been charged with a crime and has denied the rape allegation. He has refused to resign.

At an emergency closed door meeting on Sunday, the GOP board voted to strip Mr Ziegler of his pay and authority.

"Christian Ziegler has engaged in conduct that renders him unfit for the office," the party's motion to censure him said, according to a document posted on X by Lee County Republican Chairman Michael Thompson.

Mr Ziegler tried unsuccessfully to fend off the board's efforts to suspend him, Mr Thompson said. "Ziegler on soap box trying to defend himself, not working," he wrote, adding minutes later that Mr Ziegler's salary had been reduced to $1.

The party's executive committee will hold another vote on whether to remove Mr Ziegler.

The Sarasota Police Department in Florida is investigating a woman's accusations that Mr Ziegler raped her at her apartment in October.

According to heavily redacted police documents, Mr Ziegler, his wife, Bridget Ziegler and the woman had planned a threesome that day, but Mrs Ziegler was unable to attend. Mr Ziegler arrived alone, the complaint alleges, and assaulted the woman.

Mrs Ziegler has also faced professional turmoil following the allegation

An investigation is ongoing. No charges have been filed against Mr Ziegler, who has said the encounter was consensual. He did not respond to a request for comment.

The accusation has brought a rapid fall from grace for the Zieglers, a conservative Florida power couple with growing political influence. In his post as Florida's top GOP official, Mr Ziegler would be responsible for crucial fundraising ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Bridget Ziegler, an elected member of the Sarasota County School Board, is co-founder of Moms for Liberty, a national right-wing advocacy group born out of a resistance to Covid-19 school closures and mask mandates.

At a Sarasota board meeting last week, she resisted calls to resign, fielding criticism from speakers who cast Mrs Ziegler - who with her husband has promoted anti-LGBT policies - as a hypocrite.

"Most of our community could not care less what you do in the privacy of your own home, but your hypocrisy takes centre stage," said Sally Sells, a Sarasota resident according to the New York Times.