Two women accuse Al Franken of sexually harassing them at Democratic events

“My story is eerily similar to Lindsay Menz’s story,” she said, referring to the second accuser. “He grabbed my buttocks during a photo op.” The woman told Huffpo she wished to remain anonymous in order to avoid online harassment.

Groped at a Democratic fundraiser

A second woman described what happened to her with the senator when she attended a Democratic fundraiser in 2008, again in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

She told Huffpo that Franken cupped her buttocks and then made a suggestion that they visit the bathroom together.

“My immediate reaction was disgust,” she said. “But my secondary reaction was disappointment. I was excited to be there and to meet him. And so to have that happen really deflated me. It felt like: ‘Is this really the person who is going to be in a position of power to represent our community?’”

She also requested anonymity to protect her employment.

A pattern of accusations

These two sound very similar to the experience reported by Lindsay Menz, who said Franken groped her as they took a photo together in 2010. The first accuser was a news anchor who produced a photograph of Franken jokingly pretending to grope her breasts as she slept. She says he also forced her to kiss him.

While some stand by the senator, like female staffers at Saturday Night Live who drew a letter of support, a poll Tuesday showed support for Franken collapsing among his Minnesotan constituents.