Missouri Mayor Resigns Over Ongoing Facebook Attacks

The mayor of a Missouri town resigned Tuesday, citing hatred, attacks and lies about him on Facebook.

Lexington Mayor Fred Wiedner wrote an open letter to the city saying the job was no longer worth the battle.

In the letter, Wiedner says he didn’t sign up for the “mess.”

Wiedner says the trouble began in February when the City Council voted to fire the city administrator, a popular longtime resident. Wiedner says he is comparatively new to town and the public blamed him.

Wiedner says the situation led to continued social media criticism that he decided he didn’t want to spend time defending.

Lexington, about 50 miles (80.46 kilometers) east of Kansas City, has fewer than 5,000 residents.