Governor Walz, DFL Party, call for Rep. John Thompson to resign immediately over allegations of domestic violence

Governor Tim Walz, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, and the Minnesota DFL Party on Saturday called for the resignation of state Rep. John Thompson.

An attorney for Thompson said the St. Paul Representative has no plans to resign.

He also said the allegations are false and pointed out Thompson has never been convicted of any domestic violence charges.

Calls for Thompson's resignation come after numerous allegations of domestic violence against Thompson were revealed stemming between 2003 and 2010.

"The alleged acts of violence against multiple women outlined in these reports are serious and deeply disturbing," Walz said in a statement. "Minnesotans deserve representatives of the highest moral character, who uphold our shared values. Representative Thompson can no longer effectively be that leader and he should immediately resign."

The domestic violence allegations were uncovered following a controversial July 4 traffic stop involving Thompson in St. Paul. Thompson, who accused the officer of racial profiling, gave the office a Wisconsin driver's license.

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Questions were then raised about his residency status and a report by Fox 9 found domestic violence cases stretch back to October 2003, in Superior, Wisconsin.

Thompson was arrested after allegedly striking his girlfriend in the face with an open and closed fist. According to Fox 9, the woman’s five-year-old daughter witnessed the assault, which happened in a Supermarket parking lot.

"As a mom, advocate for children, and survivor and child witness of domestic violence, I know the deeply traumatic impact of the actions outlined in reports against Representative Thompson," Lt. Gov. Flanagan said. "Someone who has allegedly demonstrated this violent pattern of behavior, especially in the presence of children, is unfit to serve in elected office. Representative Thompson must resign."

The report shows other alleged domestic violence incidents involving Thompson occurred in 2004, 2009, and 2010.

DFL Party Chair Ken Martin called for Thompson's immediate resignation on Saturday:

“Numerous allegations against Representative John Thompson have recently come to light that show an incredibly disturbing pattern of violent and abusive behavior. The reports that Thompson physically assaulted multiple women, often in the presence of children, are absolutely sickening. Physical and sexual violence are anathema to everything we stand for as DFLers and as Minnesotans, and nobody credibly accused of such heinous acts has any place in elected office. I am calling on Representative Thompson to resign from office effective immediately.”

It appears that House Republicans are prepared to pursue action against Rep. Thompson.

House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt wrote, "House Republicans have prepared additional ethics complaints that will be filed Monday in the event Representative Thompson does not resign."