Ohio Senator Jon Husted "parted ways" with a campaign staffer after it was reported that he had once used an image of Nazi soldiers as his Facebook profile picture. The now-deleted photo on Stephen B. Woytek's profile showed SS soldiers holding captured Soviet banners, The Washington Post reported Friday.
The outlet also said he had recently shared a public music playlist celebrating the defunct white-minority-ruled nation of Rhodesia. Concern has grown around the apparent growth within the Republican Party of those who hold white supremacist views, particularly younger men. Woytek worked on Husted's reelection campaign, but a spokesperson confirmed to Newsweek that the Republican senator decided to "part ways" with the 25-year-old after learning about the posts.
"Steve serves our country honorably as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army and is a proud graduate of The Citadel," a spokesperson said. "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. Husted demands better of those who represent him." Newsweek reached out to Woytek via his Facebook page for comment Friday afternoon. In a statement to the Post, the part-time Platoon Leader with the Army National Guard said he was "utterly heartbroken" at leaving Husted's campaign.
According to the Post, Woytek, 25, used a photograph of soldiers from the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler division as his Facebook profile picture. The image was not publicly visible as of Friday afternoon. The outlet also reported that Woytek had engaged with social media accounts connected to military reenactment groups portraying the same SS unit and had participated in historical reenactments while dressed in period uniforms.
More recently, reporting linked a Spotify account bearing Woytek's name and photo to a playlist titled "Tales From Rhodesia." The playlist was described as being for someone "homesick for a place that no longer exists" and included songs celebrating Rhodesia, the former state that existed until Zimbabwe's independence in 1980. Civil rights groups and historians have noted that Rhodesian symbolism has been embraced by some white supremacist movements. The imagery has appeared in several high-profile extremist cases in recent years.
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