Police investigating Florida Republican Party chair over alleged sexual assault

MIAMI — The Sarasota Police Department is investigating Florida Republican Party Chair Christian Ziegler, whose wife co-founded the conservative parents group Moms for Liberty, following allegations of sexual assault.

According to a heavily redacted police report obtained by POLITICO through a public records request, the alleged incident took place on Oct. 2 at a home in Sarasota and the victim filed a complaint two days later. The documents omit details about the victim's statement to authorities but include the words "rape" and "sexually battered."

The Florida Trident, the news platform for the open government watchdog Florida Center for Government Accountability, was first to report on the news.

Ziegler, through his attorney, acknowledged the police were investigating him and said he'd been "fully cooperative with every request made by the Sarasota Police Department."

"We are confident that once the police investigation is concluded that no charges will be filed and Mr. Ziegler will be completely exonerated," his attorney, Derek Byrd, said in a statement. "Unfortunately, public figures are often accused of acts that they did not commit whether it be for political purposes or financial gain. I would caution anyone to rush to judgment until the investigation is concluded."

Gov. Ron DeSantis, after debating California Gov. Gavin Newsom in Georgia, said Ziegler should resign as head of the Florida Republican Party.

"I think he should step aside. He's innocent till proven guilty, but we just can't have a party chair that is under that type of scrutiny," he said, according to ABC News.

Ziegler is married to Bridget Ziegler, a school board member in Sarasota County and Moms for Liberty co-founder. The group has risen to prominence in Florida under the DeSantis administration, which emphasizes rooting out any traces of liberal “indoctrination” — particularly on the issues of sexual orientation, gender identity and race.

Bridget Ziegler did not respond to requests for comment.

The Trident article quotes anonymous sources who say the Zieglers were in a consensual three-way sexual relationship with the victim but that Bridget Ziegler wasn't there when the alleged sexual assault happened. POLITICO was not immediately able to substantiate the claims.

Moms for Liberty on Thursday indicated that it was standing by Bridget Ziegler, saying in a statement that “we are confident she will get to tell her side of things to those who are interested in more than click bait.” The group added that Bridget Ziegler stepped back from the organization’s board in 2021.

Gov. Ron DeSantis and other top leaders, including Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., met with Moms for Liberty this year to plot out local school board candidates to oppose in 2024, following up on scores of endorsements and nominations in the 2022 cycle. Moms for Liberty has a growing national presence, with close to 300 chapters, while reporting more than $2 million in revenue for 2022.

DeSantis also appointed Bridget Ziegler to be one of the chairs for the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, the governing board that DeSantis tapped to oversee the district surrounding Walt Disney World after a heated fight about LGBTQ+ topics in public schools.

News of the alleged incident broke just hours before DeSantis was set to appear in a highly advertised debate on Fox News against Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, who has criticized DeSantis for his policies on schools.

The Republican Party of Sarasota County said in a statement that it was "shocked and disappointed" about the reports regarding the Zieglers.

“We are shocked and disappointed to hear of the reports concerning Republican Party of Florida Chair and Sarasota County State Committeeman Christian Ziegler, and his wife, Sarasota County School Board Member Bridget Ziegler,” said the group's chairman, Jack Brill. “The Republican Party takes all such allegations of potential criminal conduct very seriously and will fully cooperate with investigators.”

Nikki Fried, who chairs the Democratic Party of Florida, said the accusations against Ziegler "should be taken seriously" and called on him to immediately resign.

Five members of the Republican Party of Florida told POLITICO they'd seen the allegations in news stories but hadn't heard from party leaders directly.

In a text to POLITICO, Ziegler said he’s still the head of the GOP in Florida.

Ziegler recently attended an event at Mar-a-Lago that former President Donald Trump hosted to honor Republican Party of Florida county leaders. He also organized a "Freedom Summit" fundraiser in Kissimmee, Fla., where both Trump and DeSantis spoke.