Santa Clara County race roiled by sexual allegations

Santa Clara Councilmember Dominic J. Caserta discusses San Francisco 49ers' management of Levi's Stadium during Santa Clara City Council meeting in Santa Clara, Calif., on Tuesday, November 22, 2016. Santa Clara Councilmember Dominic J. Caserta discusses San Francisco 49ers' management of Levi's Stadium during Santa Clara City Council meeting in Santa Clara, Calif., on Tuesday, November 22, 2016. Photo: Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Santa Clara County race roiled by sexual allegations 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Santa Clara City Councilman Dominic Caserta has lost support in his campaign to be elected to the county Board of Supervisors and police have asked for any victims to come forward after allegations of sexual misconduct emerged against Caserta.

The misconduct allegations, first reported by San Jose Inside, came to light when a Santa Clara Unified School District personnel file for Caserta, who teaches civics at Santa Clara High School, was accidentally sent out to the entire school district. It was later deleted.

The file documents how Caserta faced allegations of misconduct dating back to 2002. His alleged behavior included unwanted hugging, inappropriate comments and flirting.

In one instance, Caserta reportedly ran his hands through a female student’s hair, said he was sexually aroused and made sexually suggestive comments about her clothing.

Police reportedly were called to the school twice in 2002 in response to allegations that Caserta had sexually harassed students. The Santa Clara Police Department said Wednesday that it was looking for records of calls involving Caserta in response to requests for city records.

Caserta denied the allegations, calling them “false and made up” in a statement on his campaign website. He said that the district had investigated the claims and that he was exonerated.

“Rehashing things that occurred 12 to 16 years ago is a waste of time,” Caserta said. “Sadly, that’s just the political climate.”

The school district did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the wake of the misconduct allegations, Caserta has lost a number of endorsements. The Santa Clara County Democratic Party pulled its support on Wednesday, adding that “women of all ages should be free of any form of harassment, at school, in the workplace, and in any other setting.”

The South Bay Labor Council, the Santa Clara Police Officers’ Association and the Santa Clara Firefighters Local 1171 also reportedly pulled their endorsements.

In a joint statement, the San Jose Police Officers Association, the San Jose Fire Fighters Local 230 and the Santa Clara County Government Attorneys Association called on Caserta to pull out of the race and resign from his role as a City Council member.

Mayor Lisa Gillmor described the allegations as troubling. The city attorney will provide possible reprimands for Caserta, which may include requesting that he resign, Gillmor said.

“Not only is he an elected official, but he is a Santa Clara High School teacher as well,” Gillmor said in a statement. “So the fact that the allegations are from young adults and minors is deeply disturbing.”

The City Council will meet Tuesday to discuss the allegations and to give Caserta a public forum to respond.

Annie Ma is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ama@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @anniema15