Self-proclaimed conservative Christian Ohio state Rep. Wes Goodman resigned from the legislature Tuesday after admitting he had sex with a man in his government office.
“Christian. American. Conservative. Republican.”
That’s how Ohio state Rep. Wes Goodman described himself on his Twitter account. He forgot “Closeted. Gay. Hypocrite. Adulterer.”
Goodman, 33, who is married to a woman, resigned Tuesday “after being confronted with evidence of inappropriate conduct with another man inside his Riffe Center office,” according to the Columbus Dispatch. The newspaper said his resignation came after he met with House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger, R-Clarksville, “soon after the speaker became aware of an incident from weeks ago in the lawmaker’s office that, sources said, involved a male in a consensual situation.”
The Dispatch also reports that there was no complaint filed against Goodman, but that “someone, reportedly not a staffer, who knew of or witnessed the incident informed House Chief of Staff Mike Dittoe of the situation.”
LGBTQNation is reporting that “several GOP insiders” have said there is video of the encounter in Goodman’s office, but Brad Miller, spokesman for Speaker Rosenberger, denied the allegation.
Rosenberger told the Dispatch that he was “alerted to details [Monday] afternoon regarding [Goodman’s] involvement in inappropriate behavior related to his state office,” and that Goodman had “acknowledged and confirmed the allegations.”
Miller said that Rosenberger and Goodman both agreed his behavior was “activity unbecoming of a state representative.”
In a statement announcing his resignation, Goodman said: “We all bring our own struggles and our own trials into public life. That has been true for me, and I sincerely regret that my actions and choices have kept me from serving my constituents and our state in a way that reflects the best ideals of public service. For those whom I have let down, I’m sorry. As I move onto the next chapter of my life, I sincerely ask for privacy for myself, my family, and my friends.”
Goodman is the second Ohio legislator to resign over allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior Sen. Cliff Hite, R-Findlay, resigned last month after a staffer filed a complaint for sexual harassment, saying Hite asked her repeatedly to have sex with him in his condo in Columbus.
In addition, the legislature’s Democratic chief of staff, Mike Premo, resigned on Monday after a staffer accused him of inappropriate behavior.
