Democratic socialist who said to ‘cancel Thanksgiving’ is Democratic frontrunner for Wisconsin governor

Democratic socialist Francesca Hong, who is the frontrunner in Wisconsin’s Democratic primary for governor, is standing by controversial social media posts, telling Heartlander News “I haven’t deleted them.”

The closely watched race in Wisconsin will be the latest test of whether the progressive insurgency can win in a deeply purple state, as Democrats are deeply divided between the party’s centrist and progressive factions.

Hong holds a commanding double-digit lead among Democrats, with 38% support in Marquette Law School polling released July 29. A day later, her closest rival, former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, dropped out, saying in a video statement it had “become very clear who our nominee is going to be.” The winner of the Aug. 11 primary will likely face Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany in November, replacing outgoing Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

Hong, a state lawmaker and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, lists universal childcare, “LGBTQ healthcare access,” refusing to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement, and creating publicly owned grocery stores as top priorities in her campaign platform.

She has also promised to roll back school choice programs, noting that “public dollars belong in public schools” and adding that, as governor, she will “start a responsible transition away from the unfair voucher program, which gives financial advantages to private schools over public ones.”

Despite Hong’s lead among Democrats, she is under fire for controversial social media posts that include referring to women as “birthing bodies,” calling for the Senate to be abolished, and saying that she almost had an “anxiety attack” because of being around too “many old white people.” One resurfaced post called for canceling Thanksgiving while another complained about Valentine’s Day: “the worst of humanity comes out from folks ‘celebrating’ on another day capitalism tells you how to show love,” she wrote. 

Asked about the posts by Heartlander News, Hong said, “My past tweets have been public for years, and I haven’t deleted them.” While most of her old posts remain on her X account, the “Cancel Thanksgiving” post has been deleted.

“If Tom Tiffany and Republicans want to spend their time manufacturing outrage about jokes tweeted seven years ago, that’s their choice on how they spend their time and energy. I prefer to focus on meeting with voters and sharing our plan to create permanent affordability for working people in Wisconsin,” she said in a statement, adding that Tiffany can’t compete on ideas so he is “resorting to negativity, Twitter flame wars, culture wars and racial division.”

Tom Tiffany

President Donald Trump endorsed Tiffany, calling him a “very successful businessman, family farmer, and state legislator” prior to his time in Congress. 

“As your next Governor, Tom will continue to work tirelessly to Grow the Economy, Cut Taxes and Regulations, Promote MADE IN THE U.S.A., Champion American Energy DOMINANCE, Keep our Border SECURE, Stop Migrant Crime, Ensure LAW AND ORDER, Strengthen our Brave Military/Veterans, Advance Election Integrity, Advocate for the Working Men and Women of Wisconsin, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “He will fight to advance Common Sense Values, and put WISCONSIN, AND AMERICA, FIRST.”

In a hypothetical matchup between Tiffany and Hong, RealClearPolling’s averages indicated Tiffany leads by 3 percentage points. 

Tiffany, whose campaign did not respond to a request for comment from Heartlander News, has cast the race as a chance for Wisconsin to put the brakes on socialism.

“Wisconsin will be the firewall that stops socialism from spreading across America,” he wrote on X. “We believe in common sense: lower taxes, safer communities, secure borders, support for law enforcement, and the freedom to succeed. We reject big-government socialism.”

Image credit: Rep. Francesca Hong (Facebook)