Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo., leaves the House GOP caucus meeting in the Capitol Visitor Center on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
A U.S. Senate candidate for Missouri says she has no plans to delete a transphobic tweet that violated Twitter's rules against hateful conduct, even after the social media platform said she won’t be able to tweet, retweet, follow or like posts until she does.
Twitter suspended Vicky Hartzler’s personal account on Monday.
Hartzler's tweet, posted in mid-February, said: "Women’s sports are for women, not men pretending to be women," and included her TV ad targeting transgender people in sports and particularly University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas.
She released a statement on Facebook saying: ""Twitter says I can’t speak the truth on their platform- well, they can just have their account back! I won’t delete my tweet, and I will keep speaking the truth! Women’s sports are for women, not men pretending to be women."
Hartzler is a congresswoman representing Missouri's 4th District. She is among several Republicans vying for the 2022 Senate seat. Incumbent Republican Roy Blunt announced last year he would not seek a third term.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.