--- title: Women of SNL Sign Letter of Support for Sen. Al Franken description: 36 women who worked with Sen. Franken during his time on 'Saturday Night Live' have come forward with a letter of support for the politician canonical: https://time.com/5033572/saturday-night-live-women-alumni-al-franken/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-11-21T18:06:31.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T18:19:39.012Z article:section: Politics og:title: 36 Women From 'SNL' Sign Letter of Support for Sen. Al Franken og:description: The women all worked with Franken on the show og:url: https://time.com/5033572/saturday-night-live-women-alumni-al-franken/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt420a20f85b5a6b2a/6988e6a0e76ad2e3e1630068/al-franken2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Senate Candidate Al Franken Holds Election Night Gathering og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 36 Women From 'SNL' Sign Letter of Support for Sen. Al Franken twitter:description: The women all worked with Franken on the show twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt420a20f85b5a6b2a/6988e6a0e76ad2e3e1630068/al-franken2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 36 Women From _Saturday Night Live_ Sign Letter of Support for Sen. Al Franken > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=43807dee-ef4c-4e5b-8ed0-5808b6ae8bf5&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1)  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Nov 21, 2017 6:06 PM UTC  U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken speaks to the crowd during the DFL gathering on November 4, 2008 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in St. Paul, Minnesota. U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken speaks to the crowd during the DFL gathering on November 4, 2008 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in St. Paul, Minnesota. Cory Ryan—Getty Images  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Nov 21, 2017 6:06 PM UTC On Tuesday, 36 women who worked on [_Saturday Night Live_](http://time.com/5031036/snl-al-franken-sexual-misconduct/?iid=sr-link4) came out to defend Minnesota Sen. Al Franken in a signed letter of solidarity for the show’s one-time cast member and current Democratic politician. Franken has [recently come under fire](http://time.com/5028172/leeann-tweeden-al-franken-apology/) with allegations of sexual misconduct, from radio anchor Leeann Tweeden and [Lindsay Menz](http://time.com/5031492/al-franken-was-just-accused-of-inappropriate-touching-by-a-second-woman/). In their letter, the _SNL_ staffers — who had all worked alongside Franken at some point during his tenure on the comedy show — say that they “feel compelled to stand up” for Franken. “What Al did was stupid and foolish, and we think it was appropriate for him to apologize to Ms. Tweeden, and to the public,” [the letter continues](https://twitter.com/NBCNews/status/932951937531686912). “In our experience, we know Al as a dedicated and devoted family man, a wonderful comedic performer, and an honorable public servant. That is why we are moved to quickly and directly affirm that after years of working with him, we would like to acknowledge that not one of us ever experienced any inappropriate behavior; and mention our sincere appreciation that he treated us with the utmost respect and regard.” Franken has [apologized](http://time.com/5028172/leeann-tweeden-al-franken-apology/) for his behavior. The 36 staffers include writers, production assistants and costume designers with experiences on _SNL_ dating back to the 1970s and up through the present. Other [female staffers of the politician’s](http://time.com/5030073/al-franken-female-staffers-defend/) have also publicly defended Franken. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5033572/saturday-night-live-women-alumni-al-franken/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5033572/saturday-night-live-women-alumni-al-franken/"},"headline":"36 Women From Saturday Night Live Sign Letter of Support for Sen. 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