Democratic Representative Ellison to Call on House Ethics Committee to Investigate Allegations of Abuse

Re. Keith Ellison of Minnesota is being sued by allegations made by an ex-girlfriend.

(Alex Kormann / Star Tribune via AP, File)

Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., Is planning to ask the House Ethics Committee to investigate allegations of abuse committed by a former girlfriend.

Ellison, running in a tight race against Republican Doug Wardlow for the state's attorney general, vehemently denied the allegations and said he wanted "the whole problem to be solved".

"Today, I announce that I will submit a request for investigation of the House Ethics Committee on allegations made against me by a former partner. I'm doing it now because I'm innocent and eager to see this whole thing resolved, "Ellison said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. "In addition to any ethical investigation by the House, an independent investigation was conducted by an independent lawyer. I fully complied with this survey, the results of which should be made public shortly. "

"These allegations have persisted in the public sphere and remain without foundation. I welcome an investigation by the House to allow us to move forward, "he added.

A former girlfriend accused Ellison of physical abuse last month, just days before his victory in the overcrowded Democratic primary for AG. The accuser, Karen Monahan, said that Ellison once dragged her by a bed, shouting obscenities. She claims to have a video of the 2016 incident, but refused to publish it, saying it was embarrassing.

The long-time Congressman from Minnesota and vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee called the allegations false and attempted to answer a series of questions after winning the August 14th primary. But the old allegations of sexual assault that disrupted Brett Kavanaugh's candidacy to the Supreme Court renewed Ellison's attention and a six-week investigation into his conduct that showed little signs of progress .

In Minnesota and Washington, Republicans have called the hypocrites democrats for blocking Kavanaugh's appointment to the Senate while failing to address Ellison's situation. Republican Karin Housley, who runs against Democratic Senator Tina Smith to complete the term of former Senator Al Franken, criticized Smith for campaigning with Ellison while she was calling for an investigation into Kavanaugh.

The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chairman, Ken Martin, said that he felt the investigation was over and that a final report should be released in the coming days.

"I'm getting a bit frustrated because it's been a long time now, almost two months," he said. "I hope soon, I hope that any day here."

While the State party 's lawyer had initially investigated the allegations against Ellison, Martin decided, after the August primary, to hire an outside investigator to investigate his case. assuring "that he would not be colored by people associated with the party". Susan Ellingstad, a partner in a Minneapolis law firm with state attorney Charlie Nauen, was hired.

Minnesota Democrats are concerned that the allegations against Ellison could impact their chances in November of retaining an Attorney General's office that they have been controlling for more than four decades. Public polls show Ellison in a close race with Wardlow, a former little-known state legislator who turned the allegations into a campaign problem.

A recent poll for the Star Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio News showed Ellison with only 41% of voter support – a five-point advantage over Wardlow – while more than 18% of respondents were undecided. The survey polled 800 likely voters from September 10 to 12 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

Associated Press contributed to this report.