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January 25, 2019

Florida Secretary of State Quits over Photos Showing Him in Blackface
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In Florida, newly appointed Secretary of State Michael Ertel resigned
Thursday, just hours after photos emerged showing him in blackface while
wearing a shirt reading "Katrina victim." The photos were taken at a
Halloween party in 2005 just two months after Hurricane Katrina
devastated the Gulf Coast, killing over 1,800 people and leaving much of
New Orleans underwater. Ertel was appointed by Florida's Republican
Governor Ron De Santis, who narrowly defeated Democrat Andrew Gillum in
November. Gillum is African-American, and during the campaign he faced a
string of racist attacks from outside groups-and from De Santis, who
told Florida voters ahead of the election not to "monkey this up."


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