Steve Wynn resigns as RNC finance chair after sexual misconduct allegations

Republican National Committee (RNC) finance chairman Steve Wynn is stepping down from his post following sexual misconduct allegations, according to a Republican source familiar with the matter.

“Today I accepted Steve Wynn’s resignation as Republican National Committee finance chair,” RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel said in a statement obtained by The Hill.

The RNC’s statement Saturday, first reported by Politico, was its first response since allegations of sexual misconduct involving the casino mogul broke the previous day.

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Wynn issued a statement on Saturday, saying he was resigning in light of the “distraction” created by the allegations. 

“Effective today I am resigning as Finance Chairman of the RNC. The unbelievable success we have achieved must continue. The work we are doing to make America a better place is too important to be impaired by this distraction.  I thank the President for the opportunity to serve and wish him continued success,” Wynn said. 

GOP officials came under pressure to respond after The Wall Street Journal reported Friday on the allegations against Wynn, which span decades, from employees at his properties.

The Journal reported that Wynn reached a $7.5 million settlement with a manicurist who worked at his Wynn Las Vegas property who said he forced her to have sex with him. Other women reported multiple other instances of inappropriate touching or comments.

Wynn denied misconduct allegations in a statement to the newspaper. 

“The idea that I ever assaulted any woman is preposterous. We find ourselves in a world where people can make allegations, regardless of the truth, and a person is left with the choice of weathering insulting publicity or engaging in multi-year lawsuits. It is deplorable for anyone to find themselves in this situation,” Wynn said.

The casino mogul claimed that “the instigation of these accusations is the continued work of my ex-wife Elaine Wynn, with whom I am involved in a terrible and nasty lawsuit in which she is seeking a revised divorce settlement.” Elaine Wynn’s attorney denied the claim. 

News of the allegations sent Wynn Resorts’s stocks plummeting on Friday, with the company’s board of directors launching an investigation “comprised solely of independent directors” to look into the allegations.

It also fueled political attacks, with the Democratic National Committee (DNC) hammering its Republican counterpart for two consecutive days, accusing party officials of having a double standard when it came to handling allegations of sexual misconduct.

Democrats noted that Republicans were quick to call out Democratic lawmakers and say that the party should return donations from filmmaker Harvey Weinstein when a wave of sexual misconduct allegations against him emerged in the fall.

“In the exact words of RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, ‘If you stand for treating women well and you stand for the respect of women, you shouldn’t take money from somebody who treated women with the absolute highest level of disrespect,’ ” DNC deputy communications director Sabrina Singh said in a statement Friday that the party recirculated on Saturday.

Wynn was tapped to serve as the GOP’s finance chairman following President Trump’s inauguration last year. He previously called Trump a “great friend” in 2016 and served as a vice chairman on Trump’s inaugural committee.

The businessman has donated to an array of political organizations as well both Republican and Democratic politicians.

He gave around $450,000 to the RNC and over $761,000 to the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Party officials have not indicated yet what they will do with Wynn’s donations. 

Wynn donated $729,217 to Trump’s inauguration and has made major contributions to Sens. Dean Heller (D-Nev.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and former Rep. Joe Heck (R-Nev.). 

The mogul has also made smaller donations to various lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.).

Wynn has also made donations to Democrats, giving over $31,000 to former Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and smaller donations to former Vice President Joe Biden and former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

Josh Delk contributed to this report, which was updated at 3:30 p.m.