Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate and Democratic state lawmaker Francesca Hong has reversed her previous support for abolishing the police, saying in a podcast episode released Tuesday that she is now «serious about public safety» and would not support eliminating law enforcement.
During an appearance on «Pod Save America,» Hong was asked how her views on policing had evolved since 2020, when she wrote on social media that «police exist to uphold white supremacy» and that she supported defunding the police «as a first step towards abolishing the police.» She responded: «My views have only become stronger in that I’m serious about public safety and I will not abolish the police.»
Hong, a chef and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, said her focus is on stopping violent crime and improving law enforcement. «My views are that people are struggling right now and need basic needs met, and I want to focus on stopping violent crime and giving law enforcement the resources and the training that they need, but ensure we are also holding accountable law enforcement that does not follow the law,» she said. Asked directly whether she still believes police exist to uphold white supremacy, she answered, «No.»
She attributed the change to conversations with people directly affected by the justice system. «I’ve had more conversations with people who are more directly connected to the problems and have learned that it is most important for a public servant like myself to make sure we’re looking at sensible, practical solutions that will help keep communities safe,» she said. She added that her thinking has been shaped by people who are «most justice impacted,» including a mother who lost a child to police violence and people who have faced injustices in historically marginalized communities.
The remarks mark a clear shift for Hong, who has faced renewed scrutiny in recent weeks after a series of deleted and older social media posts resurfaced. She also described her earlier comments about imagining a «world without prisons» as «more aspirational.» Critics have pointed to her 2020 call to «cancel Thanksgiving» because of its colonial history and to a deleted 2019 post in which she described an anxious encounter at a Culver’s restaurant with older white customers who she said did not think she and her family spoke English.
In a recent CNN appearance, Hong was asked whether she still believed Thanksgiving should be canceled. «I’m a chef, and one of the first meals that I made that was for the community when I was 16 years old was a Thanksgiving meal,» she said. «But Thanksgiving is also a time that’s incredibly painful for many people in our communities. And so, I think there, I wanted to make sure that people understood that there are multiple views, but views can evolve.»
Hong is a leading Democratic candidate in Wisconsin’s gubernatorial race and a prominent figure in the state’s progressive movement. Critics have highlighted her former posts as she campaigns, and the podcast interview was released as she seeks the Democratic nomination.
