Kansas Democrat Andrea Ramsey Abandons Run For Congress Over Sexual Harassment Allegations
The wave of sexual harassment/misconduct allegations brought against those in media, entertainment, and politics is apparently not limited to alleged guy aggressors now that a retired Kansas businesswoman has ended her campaign for the U.S. House.
Andrea Ramsey, a Democrat who as a first-time candidate sought to unseat incumbent Republican Kevin Yoder in the 3rd congressional district in the Kansas City area, exited the race yesterday and slammed her party for throwing her under the bus in the process.
Ramsey apparently was the front-runner to win the nomination and had raised more money than any of her Democrat rivals that she would have presumably competed against in the August 2018 primary.
In 2005, a male subordinate sued Andrea Ramsey’s company for sexual harassment. The man claimed that he rejected Ramsey’s sexual advances during a business trip and as a result, he was allegedly fired in retaliation just a few months later. Ramsey was the company’s HR executive vice president at the time.
The employee first filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which is required by law, and which “was unable to conclude whether any statutes had been violated,” the Kansas City Star explained, but the agency issued him a right-to-sue letter, which is standard procedure even when it rejects a claim.
The parties agreed to dismiss the case in July 2006 after a mediation conference, the Star added, suggesting that they apparently reached a confidential, out-of-court settlement. Ramsey previously retired from the firm in April of that year.
U.S. Rep. Yoder, who represents a swing district targeted by the Democrats heading into the 2018 midterm elections, first took office in January 2011, and is seeking reelection in KS-03.
Andrea Ramsey, who was looking to flip a Kansas congressional seat from red to blue next year, is ending her campaign after allegations surfaced that she had sexually harassed, and then fired, a former subordinate https://t.co/84OqL2AggO
— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 15, 2017
In recent weeks, sexual misconduct-related allegations have forced Congressman John Conyers, a Detroit Democrat, and Senator Al Franken, a Minnesota Democrat, out of office, although Franken hasn’t officially left yet. Similarly, Republican Congressmen Joe Barton, Trent Franks, and Blake Farenthold who are also under a cloud have dropped their plans to run for another term as a result of alleged sexual misbehavior controversies.
In a lengthy Facebook post addressed to the citizens of KS-03, Andrea Ramsey, 56, denied the allegations against her from a “vindictive” employee, and insisted that she would have fought to clear her name, including suing for defamation, if she had been named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
She also slammed the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for withdrawing the funding for her campaign.
“In its rush to claim the high ground in our roiling national conversation about harassment, the Democratic Party has implemented a zero tolerance standard…The DCCC, as gatekeeper of endorsements and campaign funding has made its choice, once again putting its thumb on the scales by not allowing the democratic primary process to proceed. It must live with the consequences of its shortsighted and reactive decision to eviscerate our campaign by not providing it with structural or financial support.”
Separately, prominent journalists Ryan Lizza and Tavis Smiley saw their careers put on hold last week as a result of sexual harassment allegations, joining a long list of predecessors in the media.
