The Illinois Capitol is pictured. | Seth Perlman/AP Photo Illinois lawmaker accused of releasing nude photos of ex-girlfriend resigns

CHICAGO — Illinois state Rep. Nick Sauer resigned Wednesday after a former girlfriend filed an official complaint accusing the first-term Republican of creating a fake Instagram account and populating it with nude photos of her to lure men into “graphic” discussions.

“As a result of the allegations by Kate Kelly, a former girlfriend, I have decided to resign,” Sauer wrote in a letter to the Clerk of the House of Representatives. “It is important that the citizens of the 51st District be fully represented. My ability to fulfill my obligations as a State Representative and public servant will be affected by the distraction of addressing these allegations. After speaking with my family, I feel it best to step away from my public responsibilities.”


Sauer submitted his resignation just hours after POLITICO reported about a complaint filed by Kelly, an ex-girlfriend, with the Office of the Legislative Inspector General. In that document, Kelly alleged Sauer used the Instagram account “to catfish other men using my privately shared naked photos. Nick would use this account to direct message men with my photos to engage in graphic conversations of a sexual nature. The men believed they were communicating with me and Nick shared private details of my life.”

In her complaint, Kelly states that she filed a police report with the Chicago Police Department and that there is “an active investigation” into her claims. CPD has not yet complied with POLITICO’s Freedom of Information Act request for the police report.

Sauer, who had been seeking re-election to a second term, declined to comment for the original story.

Julie Porter, the acting Legislative Inspector General, neither confirmed nor denied that her office was investigating Kelly’s claim. “I do not comment on issues relating to investigations, including whether or not a matter has been presented to me or is open,” she said via email.

Top GOP lawmakers condemned the alleged behavior.

State House Republican Leader Jim Durkin, in a statement emailed to POLITICO, called them “troubling,” adding, “We should allow the proper authorities to conduct their investigations.”

And even before Sauer’s formal resignation, GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner said Wednesday, “He should resign.”

The state GOP did not immediately address how it would handle Sauer’s plans to seek reelection to a second term.

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In an interview with POLITICO and in her IG complaint, Kelly claimed the two began a long-distance relationship in 2016 after meeting on the dating app Tinder. She moved to Chicago from California in June 2017 to be closer to him but the couple broke up in March 2018, after Kelly says she discovered he had been dating other women.

Both are unmarried.

“The man that I loved and honored for over two years unfortunately did not exist. Until I moved to Chicago to be closer to him, he and I would share very private photos with each other, as many couples do,” she said in an email when asked to comment about the complaint, referring to his alleged behavior as a “betrayal” that has “sickened” her.

Following the break up, Kelly said Sauer reached out “randomly” in June with a long apologetic email about their relationship and sent three dozen roses to her work.

“I quickly realized things wouldn’t change and we stopped talking again. Then at the end of June, I told him he needed to reimburse me for flights and hotels, etc.,” she said.

Sauer, according to Kelly, then transferred $2,000 into her bank account to pay the travel expenses she had accrued during their relationship. Not long after, Kelly said, she discovered the Instagram account she alleges that he created.

According to the complaint Kelly filed with the Legislative Inspector General’s office, a man previously unknown to Kelly reached out to her on July 12 on her personal Instagram account to inform her “he had been communicating for 4 months with someone pretending” to be Kelly.

The complaint says Kelly’s employer helped her determine how long the fake Instagram account had been in use based on when messages were sent, which was close to the time they had started dating.

In her complaint, Kelly writes that Sauer admitted as much. “He came to my house & confessed to catfishing men with my photos for 2 years to at least 8 men. He was unable to provide the names and begged that I let it go,” she wrote.

Kelly said she contacted Instagram, which took down the account.

A friend of Kelly’s, who asked not to be named, confirmed to POLITICO the chain of events surrounding Kelly’s discovery of the private images, saying Kelly “was incredibly upset and felt violated because these are the most personal images that a woman could have of themselves.”

No charges have been filed against Sauer.

Deborah Tuerkheimer, a professor of law at Northwestern University with an expertise in studying criminal law and violence against women, did not comment specifically on whether the allegations against Sauer, if true, would constitute criminal wrongdoing. But she said Illinois is among the states that have a “tough revenge porn law” that criminalizes as a felony the nonconsensual distribution of private sexual messages.

Also on the books is “a crime of false impersonation, or pretending to be someone you’re not,” Tuerkheimer said. “In recent years, in which ‘revenge pornography’ or consensual image distribution has become a far greater problem, states have had to get up to speed in dealing with the issue.”

Sauer, a member of the state House Sexual Discrimination and Harassment Task Force, is a self-described “fiscal hawk” who supports term limits and transparency in government, according to his website. On the subject of ethical leadership, he states: “Corruption and unethical behavior has plagued Illinois’ past, but it does not need to define our future. Nick will work hard to lead by example and make decisions that honor the values of our district and the people he will represent.”

Democratic state Sen. Melinda Bush, the co-chair of the Senate Sexual Discrimination and Harassment Awareness and Prevention, called on Sauer to resign soon after learning about the allegations Wednesday morning.

“For far too long in Springfield, sexual harassment and abuse from those in positions of power has gone unchecked,” she said in a statement. “I applaud this woman for coming forward and telling her story. Women must have confidence that when they come forward with stories of abuse that the systems in place will hear them and believe them. Without accountability there can be no change.”