The Republican Party of Florida on Sunday censured Chairman Christian Ziegler and stripped his power and salary — except for $1 — following an alleged sexual battery against a woman in Sarasota in October.
That said, the actions on Sunday in Orlando were not complete.
There will be another special meeting on Jan. 8 in Tallahassee, the Tampa Bay Times reported, and “a larger group of party members is slated to vote on completely removing Ziegler as chairperson and electing his replacement.”
The actions came as top GOP officials, from Gov. Ron DeSantis to legislative leaders and Congressional members, were pushing for Ziegler to resign his post. And on Sunday, the GOP’s executive board set up a special meeting at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando to consider discussion and actions.
News that Ziegler had been admonished on Sunday created a media storm, with national and Florida newspapers, broadcast news and “X” (formerly Twitter), and other media venues. Here are some of the headlines:
Florida GOP strips Ziegler of powers and pay amid rape allegation (Orlando Sentinel);
Florida Republican Party strips Ziegler of authority, moves toward removal (Tampa Bay Times);
Republican Party of Florida votes to strip Chair Ziegler of authority (Sarasota Herald-Tribune);
Florida Republican Party suspends chairman and demands his resignation amid rape investigation (AP The Associated Press);
Florida Republicans Strip Powers of Embattled Party Chairman (The New York Times);
Florida Republican Party suspends chairman and demands his resignation amid rape investigation (The Washington Post);
The issues surrounding Ziegler arose about two weeks ago when the Florida Trident reported that the GOP chairman and the husband of Sarasota County School Board member and Moms for Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler, was under criminal investigation after a woman filed a complaint with the Sarasota Police Department alleging that he had raped her.
According to a search warrant affidavit shared with the Phoenix by the Florida Center for Government Accountability, the accuser told police that she had previously had a three-person sexual encounter with both Zieglers. The woman had said she’d agreed to have sex with the couple again on October 2, but canceled when she learned that Bridget Ziegler could not attend.
The post Headlines across media landscape: Florida GOP Party strips chairman’s power amid rape allegation appeared first on Florida Phoenix.
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