The race for Virginia’s hotly contended 5th Congressional District took a bizarre turn on Sunday night, and it involves Bigfoot erotica. Yes, you read that correctly. Democratic candidate Leslie Cockburn is running against Republican Denver Riggleman, who has been criticized for campaigning alongside Senate candidate and member of the “fringe right” Corey Stewart. Stewart himself has drawn harsh criticism from fellow Republicans due to his alleged ties to White Supremacists — however that has absolutely nothing to do with this scandal in particular.
On Sunday evening, Cockburn tweeted screenshots of her opponent’s Instagram account (which is now private) showcasing his apparent interest in the mating habits of Bigfoot. “My opponent Denver Riggleman, running mate of Corey Stewart, was caught on camera campaigning with a white supremacist,” she wrote. “Now he has been exposed as a devotee of Bigfoot erotica. This is not what we need on Capitol Hill.”
My opponent Denver Riggleman, running mate of Corey Stewart, was caught on camera campaigning with a white supremacist. Now he has been exposed as a devotee of Bigfoot erotica. This is not what we need on Capitol Hill. pic.twitter.com/0eBvxFd6sG
— Leslie Cockburn (@LeslieCockburn) July 29, 2018
From my opponent Denver Riggleman’s Bigfoot erotica collection. pic.twitter.com/ELe0TWJh21
— Leslie Cockburn (@LeslieCockburn) July 29, 2018
Riggleman’s fetish was first noticed last week by Cook Political Report editor David Wasserman, in an overview of the 42 open Republican seats.
Riggleman ran a short-lived campaign for governor last year and has a libertarian streak. He says he’ll join the Freedom Caucus, but supports decriminalizing marijuana and opposes the locally polarizing Atlantic Pipeline project. However, the most curious element of Riggleman’s background may be a recently-deleted Facebook author page appearing to promote a self-published book titled “The Mating Habits of Bigfoot and Why Women Want Him.”
At least one Republican attributes Riggleman’s literary musings to his offbeat sense of humor. After all, his Instagram account profile reads: “Own a distillery, consult on DoD matters and had a fun run for Governor. Love whiskey, hate tyranny and embrace liberty. Whiskey Rebellion always!” But that account, since set to private, was once peppered with images of what can only be described as Bigfoot-themed erotic art.
Curious, indeed.
At any rate, the whole thing really blew up after Cockburn’s tweets on Sunday night, and “Bigfoot” quickly became a top trending topic on Twitter as everyone piled on in glee.
https://twitter.com/bessbell/status/1023767524964356097
I would vote for literally any candidate whose campaign slogan was “I’m horny for Bigfoot”
— pixelatedboat aka “mr tweets” (@pixelatedboat) July 30, 2018
That's it. You can stop, everyone. We have the greatest tweet of all time. https://t.co/b12b9phEaT
— Noah Shachtman (@NoahShachtman) July 30, 2018
You know it’s a pretty sad state of affairs when you read that a republican is into Bigfoot erotica and your first thought is “At least he’s not a child molester.”
— The Volatile Mermaid (@OhNoSheTwitnt) July 30, 2018
All you out criticizing dude for j-ing o to Bigfoot like you weren’t praising that fish sex movie less than a year ago.
— The Volatile Mermaid (@OhNoSheTwitnt) July 30, 2018
https://twitter.com/jonrosenberg/status/1023756487104053248
https://twitter.com/pattymo/status/1023779556291997699
https://twitter.com/behindyourback/status/1023786424582189061
i’m not sure it makes evolutionary sense for bigfoot’s dick to be that big
— Ashley Feinberg (ashleyfeinberg.bsky.social) (@ashleyfeinberg) July 30, 2018
I, for one, hope that guy gets fucked by a Bigfoot
— Mark Agee (@MarkAgee) July 30, 2018
*sees Bigfoot trending*
"Oh nice did they finally find it?"
*clicks* pic.twitter.com/ArhNc8Y5MX— Gino Zarrillo (@GinoZarrillo) July 30, 2018
I leave the internet for a few hours, come back to find out…
1. There's a non-cartoon person going around being named Denver Riggleman
2. He's running for office.
3. He is a white supremacist.
4. Who is into Bigfoot erotica.This would have been super weird a few years ago.
— Robyn Pennacchia (@RobynElyse) July 30, 2018
Honestly, Bigfoot erotica is the least offensive thing to come out of the GOP since the 2016 election
— Lauren Duca (@laurenduca) July 30, 2018
On Monday morning, Riggleman issued a statement on Twitter, which at this point, is like trying to put out a forest fire with an eyedropper.
Yes-I wrote a book about Bigfoot believers. Bigfoot pics by military bubbas are meant to be funny. I didn't know what Bigfoot Erotica was until @LeslieCockburn mentioned it. Weird things happening in her campaign-Let's stick to issues and Leslie's book. #bigfoot #DangerousLiaison
— Denver Lee Riggleman III (@Denver4VA) July 30, 2018
It’s unclear what impact, if any, this revelation will have on the upcoming election, but either way Riggleman will now be forever known as the “Bigfoot porn guy,” so there’s something.