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Annabella Rosciglione


NextImg:Indianapolis mayor facing calls to resign over sexual harassment

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett is facing increased pressure from city council members to resign over a scandal involving his staff.

He has faced criticism over his handling of sexual harassment allegations made by former campaign and city staffers against his former chief of staff, Thomas Cook, as well as questions about his own behavior. Four city council members, Jesse Brown, Andy Nielsen, Crista Carlino, and Josh Bain, have called for his resignation in recent weeks.

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Hogsett remains adamant that he will not resign from his role.

“The weight of these failures — ethical, personal and professional — demands accountability,” Bain, the sole Republican to call for Hogsett’s resignation so far, wrote in a statement. “Immediate change in leadership would be right for Indianapolis.”

Other details have emerged that have alarmed some community members as well. The Indianapolis Star published late-night text messages that Hogsett sent to Lauren Roberts and Caroline Ellert, the two women who have publicly accused Cook of harassment.

“In retrospect, I now can see how my words could have been taken out of context,” Hogsett told Axios in a statement regarding the messages. “I think that one of the lessons that I’ve learned in this process is that it is easy to fall prey to a more casual conversation style with those you work closely with.”

Roberts was additionally forcibly removed from a City-County Council of Indianapolis and Marion County meeting by sheriff’s deputies for not following a time rule for public comment. She and Ellert are two of several women who have accused Cook of sexually harassing them while they worked for the city and Hogsett’s mayoral campaigns.

An investigation into Cook’s behavior found no legal wrongdoing, but it was described as “overly casual and at times professionally inappropriate workplace conduct.”

Hogsett has referred to the controversy as a “noisy situation” and said his focus is on working for Indianapolis.

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“It’s unfortunate, frankly, that so much energy and effort, so much political rhetoric surrounds other things,” Hogsett said last week.

“My worry is that the political rhetoric and the tone have taken away from the ultimate mission,” he said. “And that is to do better than we had before and make the kind of changes that would make our work environment as safe as it possibly can be.”