Florida GOP Chairman Christian Ziegler addresses attendees at the Florida Republican Party Freedom Summit at the Gaylord Palms Resort in Kissimmee.
Paul Hennessy | Lightrocket | Getty Images
The Florida Republican Party on Monday fired its chairman, Christian Ziegler faces charges rape and voyeur videos.
The vote, which took place during a special meeting in Tallahassee, was widely expected after the Sarasota Police Department’s rape investigation into him was made public last month. The party chose Evan Power, its former vice president, to serve as its new president. Power had the support of most prominent Florida Republicans, including Gov. Ron DeSandis.
Ziegler was not present for the vote.
“Congratulations to our new President, @EvanPower,” the party posted on X. “Under his strong leadership, we will keep Florida RED, deliver Florida’s 30 electoral votes to the Republican presidential nominee, and elect Republicans up and down the ballot. Let’s get to work!”
Four sources in the room said there were very few people who expressed support for Ziegler staying on as president, they said the exact number is unclear because it was a voice vote.
“I think it was almost unanimous to remove Christian Ziegler, which I think is the absolute right thing to do,” a source told NBC News. “And I want to reiterate that we’re spending a lot of time and energy on this, on this meeting instead of focusing on the things we need to focus on, and that’s just because Christian Ziegler didn’t do the right thing and quit.”
Ziegler is facing charges, which were the first reported by the Florida Center for Government Accountability, that he raped a Sarasota woman he and his wife, Bridget, had known for 20 years and with whom they had previous sexual relations.
Before a meeting in early October, Bridget said she couldn’t attend, and the woman canceled. Christian, however, still showed up at her apartment and raped her, according to court records.
Ziegler has maintained his innocence and refused to resign as Florida GOP chairman, prompting Monday’s emergency meeting.
Power, the new chairman, lost his race against Ziegler during the 2023 race, but in recent weeks the party’s biggest names have endorsed him to take over. The only other candidate was Republican National Commissioner Peter Faeman.
Along with the rape allegations, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Department expanded its investigation last week into whether Ziegler illegally videotaped a sexual encounter with the woman, according to a search warrant affidavit a judge approved on Dec. 8 seeking access on Ziegler’s social media posts.
The woman told police, according to the affidavit, that she did not consent to Christian Ziegler recording the encounter.
The investigation has drawn national attention because both Christian and Bridget are prominent Florida Republicans. Bridget is a co-founder of Moms for Liberty, a national group trying to elect conservative women to local school boards.
Bridget has not been accused of any legal wrongdoing, but has faced critics who say she is a hypocrite for focusing on conservative policy issues that in many cases center on passing anti-LGBTQ laws.
Most notably, Bridget publicly took credit for helping to write a DeSantis-sponsored bill that prevented discussion of gender identity or sexual preferences in classrooms through the third grade. Supporters said it was about empowering parents, while opponents called it a “don’t say gay” bill.