WASHINGTON — Virginia Republican House candidate Harold Pyon sent around a blatantly anti-Semitic mailer this week targeting his opponent Del. Dan Helmer (HD-40), who is Jewish and the grandson of Holocaust survivors. Pyon’s mailer was egregiously anti-Semitic — emphasizing and changing the shape of Helmer’s nose, altering coloring to evoke Holocaust imagery, and implying that Helmer is greedy, depicting him next to piles of gold coins.
“Harold Pyon and the Virginia Republican Party must apologize for using anti-Semitic imagery and consistently relying on discriminatory tropes in their campaigns,” said Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee executive director Heather Williams. “The Virginia GOP is completely out of touch with the decency and values of Virginians, and they are looking to distract from their extreme agenda which includes rolling back voting rights, banning abortions, and ripping away access to health care for half a million Virginians. This kind of behavior has no place in Virginia and it must end.”
Using anti-Semitic and racist language and images to attack opponents has become a pattern of behavior for the Virginia GOP. This mailer comes on the heels of Republican candidate Hahns Copeland tweeting an incredibly anti-Semitic comment about Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn, who is the first Jewish Speaker of the House in Virginia. Del. Josh Cole (HD-28) and Del. Alex Askew (HD-85) faced similar attacks that darkened their skin tones. The anti-Askew ad from Republican candidate Karen Greenhalgh showed his image burning, playing on one of the most dangerous and racist tropes in American history. The Virginia GOP and their allies at the national level must apologize.
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