Local GOP official's social media post draws backlash in Kentucky for its depiction of the Obamas [View all]
Source: AP
By BRUCE SCHREINER and AARON MORRISON
Updated 3:17 PM CDT, October 27, 2025
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A local Republican leader in Kentucky shared a social media video depicting former President Barack Obama and his wife as apes, a historically racist trope that has ignited a backlash and a strong rebuke from the state GOP for the since-deleted post.
The post by Bobbie Coleman, chairwoman of the Hardin County Republican Party, was condemned as “vile and reprehensible” by state GOP Chairman Robert J. Benvenuti III. The state party is investigating, and he promised the “harshest action available to us” against those involved.
“The Republican Party of Kentucky condemns hate in all its forms,” he said in a statement Saturday.
Coleman confirmed sharing the video on the Hardin County GOP’s Facebook page on Saturday. The local party leader said the video was deleted and an apology was offered for “amplifying offensive imagery of former President Obama” before the state GOP weighed in with its statement.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/kentucky-republican-party-barack-obama-2590c21e3f104e796740f2d5bef9307e
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