DuPage Democratic Staffer's Waukesha Tweet Sparks Furor

DARIEN, IL — A DuPage County Democratic Party staffer and former candidate for clerk in Downers Grove Township has attracted national attention for her tweet about Sunday's Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, where an SUV plowed into the crowd, killing at least five people.

Mary Lemanski had been the social media director for the DuPage County Democratic Party since 2018. Her name has since been removed from the staff page on the DuPage Democrats website, which now only lists the social media director job description.

In the April election, Lemanski drew 47 percent of the vote for township clerk, losing to Republican Lorraine Grimsby.

Fox News reported that Lemanski wrote on Twitter, "I'm sad anytime anyone dies. I just believe in Karma and this came around quick on the citizens of Wisconsin."

In other deleted posts, according to Fox, she said, "You reap what you sow" and "It's sad people died, but when you open the door to vigilante justice, everyone seems threatening."

Lemanski appeared to be referring to the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse two days before in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

"Living in Wisconsin, (the SUV driver) probably felt threatened," Lemanksi also tweeted, according to Capitol Fax, which took screenshots of now-deleted posts she apparently shared via the DuPage Democrats Facebook page.

Lemanski resigned Monday from her Democratic Party position. She also deleted her Twitter account.

RELATED: Victims Killed At Waukesha Christmas Parade Identified

On the DuPage Democrats page, one removed post said, "I firmly believe in the right to freedom of speech. I also believe that you must be willing to accept responsibility and the consequences of your actions for that free speech."

"I unfortunately made some remarks that were not in good taste regarding the Waukesha tragedy yesterday," she wrote. "I am accepting the consequences of my free speech."

In an email to the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday, Lemanski wrote, "“I realize how hateful and hurtful my comments were, and I am truly sorry for the division and suffering I have caused. As a person who is generally always working for peace and harmony, I am ashamed of my behavior, and I hope the people of Waukesha will find healing and peace in the wake of this horrible event.”

The county's Democratic Party also issued a statement on Twitter.

"We are deeply saddened by the tragedy in Waukesha," the party said. "We are aware of statements made by a former member of our organization and find them to be incredibly insensitive and not in alignment of who we are as an organization. Our organization does not support hate in any form."

The DuPage Democratic Central Committee was paying Lemanski $500 per month to handle social media, according to Capitol Fax.

In a Facebook message, the party's chairman, Ken Mejia-Beal, said the organization immediately severed all ties with Lemanski once it became aware of her "callous and reprehensible" posts.

"She does not speak for us, and we unequivocally reject her statements about the tragic events that occurred yesterday in Waukesha," the party said.

Republicans joined in the criticism.

Greg Hart, a Republican DuPage County Board member from Hinsdale, said of Lemanski: "Shame on her."

"I am utterly disgusted that a leader of the DuPage Democratic Party — Mary Lemanski — would have so little compassion and decency to make light of the tragedy and to say 'Wisconsin citizens, even the children' in some way deserved what happened to them," Hart said in a statement on Facebook.

Hart is running for County Board chairman.