Minnesota Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan in a Facebook posting Friday claimed that she has been subjected to racist and sexist attacks by party leaders.
"Some (sadly) Republican Party leaders/executive committee members around this state have made racist comments about me, and to me — calling me 'dragon lady, a ch**k, a stupid Asian not even born in America' and other awful racial slurs," said Carnahan, who was born in South Korea and raised by adopted parents in Minnesota.
She claimed that at a rally for President Donald Trump a man approached her and called her "disgusting," and she frequently received abusive emails and social media messages.
Carnahan, who is the party's first Asian-American leader, wrote that the attacks are "starting to get to me."
She told the Star Tribune Friday that she was "venting" on her personal Facebook page, and the comments were not directed at members of her own state executive committee.
In the interview, she declined to name those who subjected her to the abuse, and said she was writing to praise her father for teaching her to maintain courtesy and respect for others even when subjected to abuse.
"I was trying to highlight the admiration and respect I have for my father. I'm trying to bring a positive voice to the party and show the importance of working together and being positive," she told the publication.
A former marketing executive, Carnahan was elected to lead the state party in 2017.
At a rally for Trump Friday near Duluth, she called on the state to back Trump's agenda.
"My friends, we are the last Midwestern state still dominated by Democrats whose sole purpose is to resist, block and obstruct President Trump's agenda," Carnahan told rally-goers. "Our neighbors in Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin, North and South Dakota have all turned red and now it's our turn. Let's show the world that there is no blue wave coming in Minnesota."
Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton narrowly won the state in the 2016 presidential election.
The Republican National Committee has not responded to a request for comment on the allegations.
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