Who is Christian Ziegler? Former Florida GOP leader's fall from grace after accusations

Two of the most powerful people in Florida have spent months under a national spotlight amidst allegations of sexual assault against one of them and hypocrisy against the other.

Christian Ziegler was the chair of the Republican Party of Florida. His wife, Bridget Ziegler, was a co-founder of the Moms for Liberty activist movement, a key consultant in Gov. Ron DeSantis' Parents’ Bill of Rights bill (derived by critics as the "Don't Say Gay" bill") and a school board member holding strong against COVID-19 measures and LGBTQ+ presence in schools.

They were an up-and-coming Republican power couple until Christian Ziegler was accused of rape last year by a woman who said she had planned to meet both Zieglers for a three-way sexual encounter, according to a Sarasota police affidavit.

Ziegler maintained his innocence throughout the investigation and Sarasota police ultimately opted not to file charges, saying the encounter was "likely consensual." The State Attorney's office also opted not to press video voyeurism charges against Ziegler for shooting video on his phone during the incident, something the woman claimed was done without her knowledge or consent.

But not before a public investigation and national headlines. DeSantis called for him to step down as GOP Chair and the state GOP board voted to censure him, strip him of authority and drop his salary down to $1. Ziegler was removed from the position on Jan. 8.

The Zieglers are in court this week fighting against the Sarasota police releasing any more of the video, emails and text documents uncovered during the investigation that show the GOP power couple "on the prowl," according to a Sarasota police memo, in various bars looking for women to bring home for sex.

Here's what you need to know.

Who is Christian Ziegler?

Ziegler, 40, was born in north Georgia, outside of Atlanta, and raised by a divorced mom working multiple jobs. One of them was as an assistant teacher at a Montessori school, and she eventually started two schools of her own.

Ziegler graduated from Florida State University with a double major in criminology and political science in 2005 and worked on Congressman Vern Buchanan's successful first campaign. He followed Buchanan to Washington, D.C. as Buchanan's legislative aide and digital media director for four years and then returned to Florida to join a start-up tech firm in Sarasota.

He continued to work behind the scenes to support the GOP and become a public advocate for conservative principles. Ziegler was elected GOP state committeeman for Sarasota County in 2012 and ran fulltime for the Florida GOP chair in 2016 but lost to incumbent Blaise Ingoglia. In 2018 Ziegler was elected to the Sarasota County Commission and became vice-chair of the Florida GOP before winning the chairman seat this year.

Ziegler also runs Microtargeted Media, specializing in targeted text messaging and digital advertising.

Ziegler and his wife Bridget are well-known as a Republican power couple and culture war advocates in Florida political circles. Ziegler has been a staunch supporter of both DeSantis and former President Donald Trump and attended the January 6 rally in 2020 but did not participate in the riot that followed.

Who is Christian Ziegler married to?

Christian Ziegler is married to Bridget Ziegler, who currently serves on the Sarasota County School Board. Bridget Ziegler was a co-founder of Moms for Liberty, a national parents-rights organization that focused on ending COVID-19 restrictions and mandates in schools but quickly expanded to lead the charge in banning books they considered objectionable in classrooms and school libraries, winning seats in local school boards and eliminating curriculums that included sex education, LGBTQ issues, discrimination and racial issues.

She stepped down from Moms for Liberty leadership later that year, but many of the principles from that and from her school board battles helped develop DeSantis' Parents’ Bill of Rights law. Bridget Ziegler was there at the bill's signing.

Bridget Ziegler, a close ally of DeSantis, was appointed to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board the governor put in place to oversee the governance of Walt Disney World after the entertainment megacompany publicly opposed his opposition-labeled "Don't Say Gay" legislation.

On Dec. 12, the Sarasota School Board approved a nonbinding resolution calling for Bridget Ziegler to resign.

The Zieglers have three daughters.

What was Christian Ziegler accused of?

According to a police affidavit, a Sarasota woman Ziegler has known for 20 years said she was sexually assaulted on Oct. 2 at her apartment.

"The victim and Christian Ziegler agreed to have a sexual encounter that included Christian's wife Bridget Ziegler," according to the affidavit. "When the victim learned that Bridget Ziegler could not make it, she changed her mind and canceled with Christian." But Ziegler showed up anyway, entered her apartment and was accused of assault during his time there.

'She told me she was raped': Listen to 911 call in Christian Ziegler sexual battery probe

Ziegler has said the sexual encounter was consensual. Both the woman and Bridget Ziegler have admitted to detectives that there was a previous sexual encounter between the three of them more than a year ago.

Police found recorded phone calls and messages between Christian Ziegler and the woman talking about that day, in which Ziegler denied assaulting her. Investigators also obtained video Ziegler took of the incident on his phone, which may have broken a state law against video voyeurism, as the victim says she was unaware the video was taken.

Police released records in February showing that the alleged victim told detectives he "had been sexually battering her for years," a list from Ziegler's phone of other women, and text messages between Ziegler and his wife and Ziegler and the woman.

Was Christian Ziegler charged with sexual assault?

On Jan. 19, Sarasota Police said they were not filing rape charges against Ziegler as they said the video showed it was likely consensual.

After reviewing the case and the evidence, the State Attorney's Office opted not to file charges for video voyeurism because they found the alleged victim's statements inconsistent.

Contributing: Zac Anderson, Sarasota Herald-Tribune

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Christian Ziegler, former Florida GOP leader in Sarasota sex scandal