Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong has reversed her previous support for canceling Thanksgiving, calling the holiday her ‘favorite’ in a recent interview with Politico. The shift comes as Hong, a self-described democratic socialist, faces pressure to appeal to centrist voters ahead of the August 11 primary election.
Hong’s reversal follows a week of scrutiny over past social media posts, including a 2020 post where she called for the cancellation of Thanksgiving, arguing it celebrated colonialism. In that post, she stated, “Cancel Thanksgiving. Should have done this in 1621. If it takes a worldwide pandemic for us to realize we should stop celebrating colonialism and the original superspreader event that killed Indegenous folx [sic] and women so be it.” The post was later deleted.
During an interview with Newsweek, Hong addressed the resurfaced criticism, stating that her past remarks were “a silly tweet” and did not reflect her current views. She emphasized her focus on governance, saying, “I truly think that I know that as governor, I care about people, every single Wisconsinite.”
Primary Race Dynamics
Hong is the frontrunner in the Democratic primary, with recent polling from State Navigate showing her leading with 44% support. Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley follows at 15%, while former Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes—who recently dropped out—had 14% support in the same poll. Other candidates polled in the single digits.
The final week of the primary has been dominated by discussions of Hong’s past social media activity, including a 2019 post where she described feeling “slightly attacked” by a Christmas-themed computer background set by a colleague. In a separate interview, she clarified that the remark was not indicative of her broader views on voters.
Hong’s Response to Past Controversies
In addressing past remarks, Hong has framed them as isolated instances rather than reflections of her policy positions. When asked about her 2020 Thanksgiving post, she did not confirm whether she still held that view but stated, “I’m not going to cancel Thanksgiving.” She later reiterated in the Politico interview that Thanksgiving is her favorite holiday.
The candidate’s campaign has not responded to requests for further clarification on her evolving stance on holidays or other past statements.