By — Laura Santhanam Laura Santhanam Leave a comment 0comments Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/sen-al-franken-says-he-will-resign-from-congress-after-sexual-misconduct-allegations Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Sen. Al Franken says he will resign after sexual misconduct allegations Politics Dec 7, 2017 11:59 AM EDT Sen. Al Franken, D- Minn., said Thursday he would resign from Congress amid allegations of sexual misconduct from at least seven women. The Democrat from Minnesota stood on the floor of the Senate Thursday and made his announcement. “Today I am announcing that in the coming weeks that I will be resigning as a member of the United States Senate,” he said, providing no specific date. Minnesotans first elected Franken to Senate in 2008 in a contentious contest against Republican incumbent Norm Coleman. He was re-elected in 2014. On Nov. 16, Franken became the latest official to be accused of sexual misconduct, when a 2006 photograph surfaced showing the then-comedian groping radio host Leeann Tweeden while she slept during a USO tour in Afghanistan. Tweeden also said Franken forcibly kissed her during the tour. Since then, a total of at least eight women have come forward making allegations of sexual misconduct against Franken, according to the Associated Press. On Nov. 24, Franken apologized to women who said he groped them. His decision to resign came after a growing number of Democratic senators called on him to step down. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton said he has not decided who he would name to replace Franken’s seat in the Senate, but he planned to name a person in the next two days, the Associated Press reported. PBS NewsHour will update this story as it develops We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Laura Santhanam Laura Santhanam Laura Santhanam is the Health Reporter and Coordinating Producer for Polling for the PBS NewsHour, where she has also worked as the Data Producer. Follow @LauraSanthanam @LauraSanthanam
Sen. Al Franken, D- Minn., said Thursday he would resign from Congress amid allegations of sexual misconduct from at least seven women. The Democrat from Minnesota stood on the floor of the Senate Thursday and made his announcement. “Today I am announcing that in the coming weeks that I will be resigning as a member of the United States Senate,” he said, providing no specific date. Minnesotans first elected Franken to Senate in 2008 in a contentious contest against Republican incumbent Norm Coleman. He was re-elected in 2014. On Nov. 16, Franken became the latest official to be accused of sexual misconduct, when a 2006 photograph surfaced showing the then-comedian groping radio host Leeann Tweeden while she slept during a USO tour in Afghanistan. Tweeden also said Franken forcibly kissed her during the tour. Since then, a total of at least eight women have come forward making allegations of sexual misconduct against Franken, according to the Associated Press. On Nov. 24, Franken apologized to women who said he groped them. His decision to resign came after a growing number of Democratic senators called on him to step down. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton said he has not decided who he would name to replace Franken’s seat in the Senate, but he planned to name a person in the next two days, the Associated Press reported. PBS NewsHour will update this story as it develops We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now