{"id":234,"date":"2026-05-13T08:34:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T08:34:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jacksonvillemovingnews.com\/?p=234"},"modified":"2026-05-13T08:34:02","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T08:34:02","slug":"gop-rep-jen-kiggans-faces-backlash-for-agreeing-with-cotton-picking-comment-about-hakeem-jeffries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jacksonvillemovingnews.com\/?p=234","title":{"rendered":"GOP Rep. Jen Kiggans faces backlash for agreeing with \u2018cotton-picking’ comment about Hakeem Jeffries"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Vulnerable Rep. Jen Kiggans, a Virginia Republican, is under fire after she agreed with a radio show host who said that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries \u2014 the highest-ranking Black lawmaker in Congress \u2014 should get his \u201ccotton-picking hands off of Virginia.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more The Trump Administration<\/a><\/p>\n

Kiggans, one of Democrats\u2019 top targets in the November midterm election, later posted that the host \u201cshould not have used that language\u201d and that she did not condone it.<\/p>\n

But that did little to satisfy Democrats, who have condemned Kiggans and urged her to formally apologize. The second-most powerful House Democrat has called on her to resign.<\/p>\n

Kiggans was being interviewed Monday by radio host Rich Herrera on \u201cRichmond\u2019s Morning News\u201d about the midterm elections and Democrats\u2019 redistricting efforts in Virginia. Herrera said that if Jeffries wanted to be involved in Virginia politics, then he should move from New York and run for office in the commonwealth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf not, get your cotton-picking hands off of Virginia,\u201d Herrera said of Jeffries.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d Kiggans replied. \u201cDitto. Yes, yes to that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kiggans later posted on X that she was agreeing with Herrera\u2019s sentiment that Jeffries should keep out of Virginia politics \u2014 not with the racist phrase that has ties to slavery and sharecropping.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe radio host should not have used that language and I do not \u2014 and did not \u2014 condone it. It was obvious to anyone listening that I was agreeing Hakeem Jefferies should stay out of Virginia,\u201d Kiggans said.<\/p>\n

The clip of the radio show started gaining traction Monday night when it was posted by the X account of the liberal opposition research group, American Bridge.<\/p>\n

Kiggans, a former Navy helicopter pilot who served in the Iraq and Kosovo wars, is facing a tough re-election bid for her seat based in Virginia Beach. She is expected to square off with former Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., a retired Navy commander who was defeated by Kiggans in 2022.<\/p>\n

Read more Republican Rep. Tom Kean\u2019s two-month absence continues as House returns<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe racist comments proudly endorsed today by Jen Kiggans warning House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to \u2018Get your cotton-picking hands off of Virginia\u2019 are disgusting and beneath any elected official. I grew up in the South. I know what these racist dog whistles mean,\u201d Luria said on X.<\/p>\n

Kiggans \u201cshould publicly apologize and denounce these racist remarks,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Democratic leaders also pounced on Kiggans\u2019 comments, calling them in line with the Supreme Court and GOP-controlled state legislatures\u2019 push to weaken the Voting Rights Act and slash Black representation in Congress.<\/p>\n

Rep. Katherine Clark, the No. 2 Democrat in the House, called for Kiggans to resign.<\/p>\n

And in a lengthy, scathing statement, Christie Stephenson, the top spokesperson for Jeffries, said Kiggans displayed a \u201cstunning failure of judgment and leadership\u201d for a \u201cso-called moderate\u201d lawmaker.<\/p>\n

\u201cExtremists who endorse disgusting, vile and racist language are pathetic. Jen Kiggans has no interest in our nation\u2019s progress toward a multi-racial democracy and apparently craves a return to the days of Jim Crow racial oppression in the South,\u201d Stephenson said in a statement. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why MAGA Republicans in legislatures and courts across America have launched a full-scale assault on Black representation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The House Republicans\u2019 campaign arm rushed to Kiggans\u2019 defense. \u201cDemocrats\u2019 performative outrage over this total nothing-burger is completely selective and driven by politics, not principle,\u201d said Will Kiley, spokesman for the National Congressional Campaign Committee, noting violent text messages from Jay Jones, Democrats\u2019 nominee for Virginia attorney general last year.<\/p>\n

Read more Kash Patel and Democratic senator trade alcohol-related allegations at congressional hearing<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kiggans, one of Democrats\u2019 top targets in November, later said she did not condone that racist phrase. One top Democrat has called on her to resign.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":233,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-congress"],"yoast_head":"\nGOP Rep. Jen Kiggans faces backlash for agreeing with \u2018cotton-picking' comment about Hakeem Jeffries - Jacksonville Moving News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/jacksonvillemovingnews.com\/?p=234\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"GOP Rep. 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