San Diego Mayor Bob Filner: DNC Ready to Tell Him to Resign - East Idaho News
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San Diego Mayor Bob Filner: DNC Ready to Tell Him to Resign

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Getty 081413 MayorBobFilner?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1377041332074Bill Wechter/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — The Democratic National Committee plans to vote later this week on a resolution calling on fellow Democrat, embattled San Diego Mayor Bob Filner to resign, adding to the already loud chorus calling for him to step down over numerous sexual harassment allegations.

Filner, only the second Democrat ever elected mayor in San Diego, has been accused of groping or sexual harassment by more than a dozen women, including several city employees.

“We expect a resolution to be voted on and pass calling on Mayor Filner to resign when the DNC meets in Arizona on Friday,” a DNC official told ABC News Tuesday.

The San Diego County Democrats and DNC chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz have already called for Filner’s resignation.

The DNC move comes an effort to recall Filner is intensifying and a day after he agreed to mediation for a sexual harassment suit filed by a former employee.

Irene McCormack Jackson, Filner’s former director of communications, filed a suit against him last month alleging the mayor sexually harassed her. Jackson’s attorney, Gloria Allred, said the mediation was ongoing, but did not provide further comment.

Filner’s office did not return calls for comment.

The effort to recall Filner officially kicked off Sunday with supporters beginning to gather signatures to get the issue on the ballot in November, a volunteer orientation and a “Freedom From Filner” march and rally.

The campaign needs to gatherer 101,597 verified signatures from San Diego residents for the recall to be put on the ballot.

The campaign had more than 800 volunteers and area directors for 18 geographic regions of San Diego, a spokeswoman said Sunday. The campaign did not respond to calls for comment about the current number of volunteers and signatures.

The Twitter handle for the campaign did display a photo of McCormack Jackson’s brother delivering a crate of signatures.

Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi tweeted last week, “Mayor Filner is out of rehab, he should be out of the Mayor’s Office — should not subject San Diegans to pain & expense of a recall.”

Filner has not expressed any intention to resign and has not had a public event since the last week of July.

ABC Affiliate KGTV reported that Filner’s personal lawyer, James Payne, said Filner was taking a “personal week” last week. He said he does not know when the mayor will return to work.

In addition to Jackson, more than a dozen women have come forward claiming that Filner sexually harassed them. The latest accusation came from a great grandmother who works at the Senior Citizens Service Desk in San Diego City Hall .

A poll conducted by KGTV and UT-San Diego found that 81 percent of San Diego voters wanted Filner to resign.

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