SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – In a twist in the ongoing story of disgraced former Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli – one of his accusers announced her candidacy for his old post on Thursday.
For more, stream KCBS Radio now.
Current vice mayor and Town Councilmember Esther Lemus is one of 14 women who have accused Foppoli of varying offenses – ranging from sexual assault to harassment – and she is now running for mayor, as first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.
In a Twitter announcement on Thursday, Lemus wrote: "I'm excited to announce that I'm running for Mayor of Windsor. As Vice Mayor, I've taken on the hard fights, working to ensure opportunities for every Windsor resident and getting results. I'm ready to continue that work as your Mayor."
Lemus first took office in the town in 2018 and served her term through the devastating Kincaid Wildfire in 2019 and then through the last two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"As Mayor, I will continue to advocate for local businesses, housing opportunities, climate action, drought prevention, and fire preparedness," Lemus wrote in a Twitter post on Thursday.
Windsor, a small wine country town in Sonoma County, made headlines last year after it was revealed that the mayor at the time, Dominic Foppoli, had been accused of sexually assaulting multiple women spanning around two decades, with allegations of rape and other crimes.
He resigned in May 2021, and in the year since multiple law enforcement agencies have begun criminal investigations into him and some of his accusers have banded together to sue him in civil court.
Lemus is one of his accusers. In February 2020, Foppoli allegedly drugged and raped her at an event. She reported the incident last year, according to the Chronicle.
"This does not represent the entire area or its residents," Lemus told KCBS Radio in an interview following Foppoli's resignation last year. "We have a very good, very strong community, a united community that did unite and has united over many traumas that we've experienced including the Kincaid Fire."
Last November, several items were seized from Foppoli's house in a search by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, and earlier this spring, part of the Sheriff's Office investigation into Foppoli was sent to the California Attorney General's Office for review.
Foppoli did file paperwork to run again in this year's election in September of last year. But it's unclear if he intends to do so.
Lemus' only current opponent is fellow Town Councilmember, Rosa Reynoza, as reported by the paper.
Lemus did not respond to KCBS Radio's request for comment at the time of publication.
DOWNLOAD the Audacy App
SIGN UP and follow KCBS Radio
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Related
