Gov. Ted Strickland joined seven other top Ohio Democrats in an extraordinary effort to oust the attorney general. They said Dann no longer can function in that office because of a litany of management failings and ethical breaches -- including an affair with an employee -- that surfaced in an investigation into sexual-harassment charges involving a Dann aide.

The Dispatch broke the news of the unified call for Dann's ouster yesterday on Dispatch.com.

"The work of the office of the attorney general matters more, and is far more important, than any one person," the Democrats wrote in a letter sent Sunday night to Dann. "In many, many cases it is all that stands between the people and the powerful. Sadly, we no longer have even the most remote hope that you can continue to effectively serve as attorney general and that is why we are asking for your resignation."

Dann rejected the request in two late-night phone conversations Sunday with Strickland. The governor said Dann was "rather firm" in his resolve. Dann reaffirmed his refusal in an e-mail at 11:43 a.m. yesterday to his entire staff.

"I am in the office, have rolled up my sleeves and am working on behalf of the people of the state of Ohio. I hope you will do the same," he wrote.

Later yesterday, Dann told the Akron Beacon Journal editorial board that he needs more time to prove himself.

"If I reach a point where I am detracting from the office, I will reconsider," Dann said. "I am nowhere near that point now."

Dann, 46, was paid $98,466 last year.

In a news conference on the Statehouse steps, Strickland said Dann told him "that he does not believe that he has done anything that would justify his leaving office, that he feels that he was elected by the people, and he will continue to do his best to remain in office."

But the governor, who noted that he spoke for five or six hours Sunday with other Democratic officials, said Dann must step down because of inconsistencies in his testi- mony and the totality of the problems in his office.

The Democrats' letter was also signed by Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, Treasurer Richard Cordray, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, the party's two legislative leaders, Rep. Joyce Beatty and Sen. Ray Miller, both of Columbus, and state party Chairman Chris Redfern.

The state party also is prepared to disown Dann, Redfern said. In 2006, Dann was the most outspoken member of a Democratic statewide slate that promised to end corruption in state government. On Saturday, Redfern said, the party's executive committee is to vote on rescinding its 2006 endorsement of Dann.

"Pending Saturday's events, he'll be holding office as an independent who was elected as a Democrat," said Redfern. "We will distance ourselves both literally and figuratively from Marc Dann until he makes the right decision, which is to step down."

Brown, who gave Dann one of his first political jobs, as a driver briefly in Brown's 1982 campaign for secretary of state, said : "I'm disappointed, of course. That is why I signed a letter that he should resign. I do feel let down. I am always disappointed when there are problems like that with an elected official."

Under the Ohio Constitution, the impeachment process begins with the passage of an impeachment document by a simple majority in the House. It concludes with what amounts to a trial in the Senate.

House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering, and Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland, also called on Dann yesterday to leave office.

Harris suggested that Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles should be called in to investigate problems in Dann's office. "The inspector general is the only office of which I am aware that is well-equipped to lead a thorough, unbiased inquiry into this matter," Harris said.

Dann has rejected suggestions that the inspector general come in, saying Charles' job is to investigate only matters related to the governor's administration.

Pressure for Dann's resignation began building over the weekend after Friday's release of the results of an internal investigation of sexual harassment in Dann's office. The probe was triggered by an April 6 Dispatch story outlining complaints made by Cindy Stankoski and Vanessa Stout, two attorney general's office employees who had been supervised by Anthony Gutierrez, a longtime Dann friend and the office's general services director.

Dann openly confessed for the first time Friday to having had an affair with a young woman on his office staff that helped set the tone for a hostile work environment resulting in the sexual harassment. Although he did not identify the woman, he confirmed that Jessica Utovich, 28, his former scheduler, sometimes spent the night at his Dublin-area condo.

As a result of the investigation, Gutierrez and Leo Jennings III, Dann's communications director, were fired. A third longtime Dann friend, Edgar C. Simpson, his top nonlegal adviser, resigned Thursday night rather than be fired Friday. Simpson was paid $110,000 a year; Jennings and Gutierrez were paid $102,000 and $87,500, respectively.

Utovich also resigned Thursday. She gave no reason in her letter of resignation and said in a response to an e-mail from The Dispatch that she has nothing to say at this time.

Over the weekend, Dann, who is married with three children, canceled the May 18 commencement speech he was scheduled to give at the Case Western Reserve University School of Law, his alma mater. The Licking County Democratic Club, which Dann was scheduled to address Thursday, withdrew its invitation.

Dispatch Washington Bureau Chief Jonathan Riskind contributed to this story.

ajohnson@dispatch.com

jnash@dispatch.com

jsiegel@dispatch.com