Jeremy Durham confirms resignation as whip

House Majority Whip Jeremy Durham's decision Sunday to resign his leadership position in the Tennessee House Republican Caucus came after a two-hour whirlwind in which GOP leadership released a statement from Durham saying he resigned, only to have Durham waffle on his resignation in several emails to The Tennessean.

The decision to resign came as Durham spent his afternoon watching the Denver Broncos football team beat the New England Patriots, and in the wake of a Tennessean investigation into inappropriate text messages he sent to three women.

Tennessean investigation finds inappropriate text messages

After the caucus sent a statement to The Tennessean at 4:27 p.m. Sunday from Durham purportedly announcing his resignation, Durham told The Tennessean in an email at 4:48 p.m. he hadn’t made up his mind yet.

“I'm talking it over with my family but have not made a decision. Nothing should've gone out,” Durham said in the 4:48 p.m. email to The Tennessean.

“Watching Broncos game at the moment.”

Durham’s denial email came three minutes after House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick said he had accepted Durham’s resignation.

"In accordance with our House Republican Caucus bylaws, I have received and accepted the resignation of Representative Jeremy Durham as House Majority Whip. I believe he has made a good decision to prevent this issue from continuing to be a distraction to our Caucus,” McCormick said in a statement.

Durham also tweeted late in the afternoon that he had not resigned. That tweet was later deleted.

Although caucus leadership initially said they had accepted his resignation, House Speaker Beth Harwell and Republican Caucus Chairman Glen Casada called for Durham to step down as whip after he said he had not resigned.

In an updated statement, sent by Durham at 6:17 p.m. to The Tennessean, Durham confirmed his resignation. He added one paragraph in the new statement, but it was largely the same as the original statement.

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According to caucus leadership, Durham made the decision to resign hours after The Tennessean published an investigation that included three women who said they received messages from the Franklin Republican they considered inappropriate. Two of the women provided text messages from Durham that were sent in 2013. Both received texts sent after midnight in which Durham asked them for pictures.

"I was under the impression that Representative Durham was resigning from his leadership position. He has since contacted me and said his statement was only a draft. This is certainly a surprise to me," Casada, R-Franklin, said in a statement at 5:06 p.m.

After Harwell sent a statement saying she thought Durham has resigned, she called on Durham to resign.

"I believe Rep. Durham should resign his leadership position,” Harwell said in the statement.

Casada agreed.

"Regardless of what is now being reported, I have spoken to Representative Durham throughout the day. I have thanked him for his service to the caucus, and have urged him to resign his position as Majority Whip. It is the mature thing to do,” Casada said in the statement.

Tennessee GOP Party Chairman Ryan Haynes blasted Durham in a statement released at 5:23 p.m. Sunday.

"Sexual harassment of any kind is wrong. Voters elect public officials to focus on our communities and our state. Officeholders should not take part in anything that undermines that commitment. This (Durham's) behavior is a stain on the good work that is done at the Legislature and is not reflective of either the good men and women who work there or the Republican Party,” Haynes said in the statement.

In the statement Sunday that Durham later called a draft, Durham never denied sending the text messages. Instead, he blamed the media for his resignation.

"This targeted media campaign continues to distract our caucus and the legislature from focusing on the serious work that needs to be done over the next few months. Stepping aside from my leadership position should put an end to my role in the distraction," Durham said in a statement.

It's unclear when Durham's resignation takes effect. The House Republican Caucus will need to meet to elect a new whip. Durham will remain in his legislative seat. He represents Franklin and other parts of Williamson County.

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On Friday, Durham said he didn’t remember sending the text messages.

“Not having seen the texts, not knowing who the other party to the conversation is, when they were sent, what exactly they say, whether I was responding or initiating the text stream, it is simply impossible to respond,” Durham said in an email Friday.

“Furthermore, the fact that there has never been a complaint filed makes me question your continued use of anonymous and unverified sources.”

The Tennessean confirmed with Rep. David Alexander that a woman recently called Alexander about possibly filing a sexual harassment complaint against Durham. Legislative human resources officials do not confirm the existence of complaints or investigations.

The women provided the text messages to The Tennessean on the condition of anonymity, for fear of reprisals from Durham.

Durham has faced recent public scrutiny before The Tennessean’s investigation. In 2013, he was the center of a prescription drug fraud investigation: The case was presented to a grand jury, and the grand jury did not indict Durham.

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In 2014, Durham used his official letterhead to send a judge a letter asking for leniency in the case of a youth pastor who pleaded guilty to statutory rape and possession of child pornography.

In the fall, Harwell asked legislative human resources official Connie Ridley to speak with Durham about “appropriate behavior.”

While the GOP caucus called a meeting ostensibly to discuss Durham’s future in leadership, none of the publicly criticized acts were ever discussed in the meeting. Instead, the caucus discussed parliamentary procedure for an hour before taking a vote to see whether it could suspend caucus rules to discuss Durham’s issues.

The motion to suspend the rules failed by one vote.

Durham has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in the wake of continued public scrutiny over his actions, despite criticism from Republican leaders.

In his final statement on his resignation, Durham said he thought the move would "put an end to my role in the distraction."

Reach Dave Boucher at 615-259-8892 and on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1. Reach Jill Cowan 615-664-2150 and on Twitter @jillcowan.