Francesca Hong, the likely Democratic nominee for Wisconsin governor, refused to give a direct answer when asked whether she still advocates canceling Thanksgiving — drawing renewed attention to past remarks she has since scrubbed from the internet.
Hong said her views can "evolve." She described Thanksgiving as a tradition she has celebrated while acknowledging it is "an incredibly painful" holiday for many people.
The question stemmed from a now-deleted post Hong made on X in Nov. 2020, in which she appeared to compare the COVID-19 pandemic to the Thanksgiving holiday and urged its cancellation.
Kaitlan Collins of CNN pressed Hong for a yes-or-no answer during the televised interview. Hong declined.
Hong is a Wisconsin state representative and has secured backing from the Democratic Socialists of America. She is considered the frontrunner for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination.
Her equivocation is not the first time she has faced questions about past rhetoric. She has also dodged earlier questions about calls to abolish the police.
Wisconsin is a battleground state where her socialist affiliation and positions on cultural issues already draw sharp contrasts with Republican opponents.
