Anti-LGBTQ+ Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) hired 25-year-old Stephen Woytek as his campaign’s political director in August. Woytek’s social media activity shows that he posted an image of Nazi soldiers as his Facebook profile photo, follows a group that reenacts Nazi military campaigns, follows several suppliers of Nazi military uniforms, and contributed to a public playlist of songs celebrating Rhodesia, a white-majority nation venerated by white supremacists, The Washington Post revealed in an article published today.
“Steve serves our country honorably as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army and is a proud graduate of The Citadel,” a spokeswoman for Husted’s campaign told the aforementioned publication. “He studies military history and routinely reenacts historical battles. While he denies negative intent, his social media activity displays a complete lack of judgement and disregard for its impact on others. Sen. Husted demands better of those who represent him. Upon learning about the social media posts today, Sen. Husted made the immediate decision to part ways.”
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The campaign didn’t answer questions about whether they vetted Woytek’s social media profiles before hiring him. Woytek apparently has a general interest in military history and also played Union and US soldiers in past Civil War and World War II reenactments, the publication noted.
Woytek said, “I want to be unequivocal: I reject the racist and antisemitic ideology the SS and Nazi Germany represented. I believe it is important to educate our younger generations, which is why I participate in historical reenactments… [I should have] exercised better judgment when posting about my activities online … I am utterly heartbroken, but respectfully am parting ways with his campaign.”
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Woytek’s social media activities raise concerns about the Republican Party’s growing comfort with Nazis. GOP funder Elon Musk made a Nazi salute at Trump’s inauguration; a College Republican group recently sued their university for the right to make Nazi salutes; another College Republican group had an online chat full of anti-gay, anti-Black, and antisemitic slurs; MAGA Rep. Dave Taylor (R-OH) was caught with a swastika on his congressional office wall; one Republican politician called himself a “Black Nazi” online; Trump’s ex-border chief recently spoke alongside neo-Nazis at pro-fascism summit; and the list of GOP/Nazi associations goes on.
Husted, Ohio’s former lieutenant governor, was appointed in January 2025 to fill the US Senate seat of former-Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) after Vance resigned to become Donald Trump’s vice president.
Equality Ohio gave Husted a D rating in 2018. In 2003, he voted for an Ohio state bill banning same-sex marriage. In 2008, he opposed a bill banning gay adoptions. But in 2023, he supported state bills restricting trans sports participation and gender-affirming care for minors. Last year, he support a state bill to out LGBTQ+ students to their parents and allow parents to opt-out their students from any LGBTQ+-related school lessons.
In April, Husted’s reelection campaign paid $1,500 to the Center for Christian Virtue, an SPLC-designated anti-LGBTQ+ hate group behind anti-LGBTQ+ bills in Ohio.
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