The Republican chairman of a Virginia electoral board stepped down over a Facebook post suggesting a black Cabinet member should be publicly lynched.
David Dietrich, the former chairman of the electoral board in Hampton, resigned on Monday, days after a year-old purported social media post of his prompted calls for his removal by top Virginia leaders, including Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
“As governor, I serve all Virginians. I won’t accept racism in our Commonwealth or our party,” Youngkin, a fellow Republican, wrote on Twitter. “The abhorrent words of a Hampton Roads official are beyond unacceptable and have no place in Virginia. It’s time to resign.”
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Chief Judge Michael Gaten, who appoints members to the board, signed off on Dietrich’s resignation Monday, relieving him of his duties.
The Republican Party of Hampton condemned the “abhorrent” language Dietrich used, noting that he resisted demands to step down. The party’s board said it had asked the chief judge to remove Dietrich.
“Immediately after learning of the Facebook post, the Republican Party of Hampton demanded Mr. Dietrich’s resignation,” the party wrote in a statement on Facebook. “The Hampton City Republican Party unequivocally condemns all forms of racism and bigotry.”
Rebecca Winn, vice chairwoman of the Hampton Electoral Board, said she was “relieved” that the chairman resigned, as she “didn’t feel safe” and “didn’t feel our voters were safe.”
Dietrich’s February 2021 post targeted Austin and retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who was appointed to lead the review of “security infrastructure” on Capitol Hill after the Jan. 6 riot, in a February 2021 post that called for a “good public lynching.” Both men are black.
The post came two weeks after Austin ordered a 60-day militarywide “stand-down” to address extremism within the ranks last February following the attack on the Capitol. The Republican Party of Hampton reshared the post earlier this month.
Dietrich said that Austin’s intention to weed out “white nationalists” was meant to “remove conservative, freedom-loving Americans” from service, referring to the officials as “n*****s.”
Hampton GOP Chairman Philip Siff declined to comment further to the Washington Examiner when asked why the party chose to share a screenshot of Dietrich’s post with its statement.
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Dietrich was one of three members on the electoral board, which oversees appointing the general registrar, training poll officials, preparing ballots, and certifying the election results. Each city and county in Virginia has its own board overseeing election business.
The former chairman’s name has been removed from the electoral board’s website, and the Hampton GOP is required to submit a list of qualified candidates for his replacement to the circuit court within 30 days. The court will then appoint a candidate to fill Dietrich’s seat until his term expires on Dec. 31, 2024.
