Nevada GOP Candidate Says He’s ‘Not Worried About Black People’ In His Bid For Congress

WASHINGTON ― Republican congressional candidate John Lee said in a new audio obtained by HuffPost that he’s “not worried about Black people” and mocked his Democratic opponent in Nevada, Rep. Steven Horsford, for being chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

“They made him chair of the Black Caucus. Whoop-de-doo,” Lee said last Monday at a campaign meet-and-greet. “I’m from North Las Vegas. I’m not worried about Black people. You know?”

Lee, who is white, went on to attack the Congressional Black Caucus for only having Democratic members. The caucus is officially nonpartisan but has only had a handful of GOP lawmakers as members since it formed in 1971. It currently has 60 members, all of whom are Democrats, and it does not include five Black Republicans, Lee said.

“So they’re the most racist people in the world,” the GOP congressional hopeful said. “They have one objective, and that is for self-domination in Congress.”

Here’s a link to the full audio of Lee’s remarks. His comments about Black people and the Congressional Black Caucus begin around the 8-minute mark.

Beyond being offensive, Lee’s remarks about not being concerned about Black people can’t be helpful electorally, either. He’s running for a seat in Nevada’s 4th Congressional District, which is 15% Black.

HuffPost attempted to contact Lee for comment. Weirdly, Lee, the former mayor of North Las Vegas and a former state legislator, does not provide any contact information on his campaign site, and a Google search yielded no information about a campaign manager or any other point of contact. HuffPost left messages for Lee via social media and with the treasurer listed on his Federal Election Commission form when he filed to run in this race.

The Nevada Republican has made other offensive comments about the Congressional Black Caucus. He called the group “stupid” in November, and in August he compared it to having “a blond-haired caucus.”

A spokesperson for the Congressional Black Caucus did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Lee’s remarks about the caucus.

A Horsford campaign spokesperson did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

The five Black Republicans currently in Congress are Reps. Byron Donalds (Fla.), Wesley Hunt (Texas), John James (Mich.) and Burgess Owens (Utah) and Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.).

Former Rep. Mia Love (R-Utah) joined the Black caucus in 2015 after previously vowing to try to take it down. In 2021, Donalds said the caucus snubbed him when he tried to join it, but a caucus spokesperson suggested it was because he didn’t share the group’s values, though he wasn’t mentioned by name.

“The Congressional Black Caucus remains committed to fighting for issues that support Black communities, including the police accountability bill, protecting voting rights and a jobs bill that helps our communities,” the spokesperson said at the time. “We will work with those who share our values and priorities for the constituents we serve.”

The Cook Political Report rates this seat, which Horsford has held since 2019, as “likely Democrat.” Polling aggregator FiveThirtyEight only lists one poll on this race, and it shows Horsford leading Lee by 10 percentage points.