Florida congressman Matt Gaetz (R) has called on the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, Christian Ziegler, to resign over allegations of rape.
“We’re at the posture where we would be better served with different leadership in the Republican Party and I think it’s time to move on and select a different leader,” Gaetz told NBC News. “I do think he should step aside.”
Ziegler is being accused of raping a woman he’d known for more than two decades. Ziegler and his wife, Moms for Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler, had initially tried to arrange a consensual threeway sexual encounter with the victim, but the woman canceled when she found out Bridget could not make it.
Ziegler later went to her house anyway and raped her. He told police that he and woman had consensual sex. But the woman told police she was intoxicated and unable to give consent, according to court documents.
Gaetz’s comments on Friday is a reversal from last week when he told Politico that Republicans in Florida should wait for more information before making a decision, citing his investigation by the Justice Department for alleged of sex trafficking. The investigation was closed in February without any charges brought against the Florida lawmaker.
“Given my experience, I tend to wait for the facts to come out before rendering judgment,” Gaetz said then.
Gaetz joins a growing list of prominent Republicans in the state to call on Ziegler to resign, including Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott.
