Michigan GOP candidate deletes photo of him standing in front of anti-government militia's flag

The Republican candidate for Michigan's lieutenant governor is apologizing after he posted a photo to Twitter showing him in front of a flag associated with an anti-government militia, Fox 2 Detroit reports.

Shane Hernandez was blasted by Michigan Democrats after posting the photo on social media.

"As Michiganders spend their holiday weekend celebrating the freedoms earned by American workers, Shane Hernandez proudly stood by the anti-government, extremist Three Percenters flag. His shameful support for the anti-American militia fits right in with Tudor Dixon’s dangerous, wrong-for-Michigan agenda to slash funding for law enforcement and undermine democracy," the party said in a statement.

In response, Hernandez "disavowed" the Three Percenters militia group's flag and "any such sentiments" it's affiliated with.

IN OTHER NEWS: Legal expert: Trump’s Pennsylvania speech could ‘put him in some legal jeopardy‘ – but there’s a bigger problem

"Regarding my last post, I bought 8oz of honey from a small business owner, and he wanted to take a picture with me at his booth," Hernandez wrote on Twitter. "When I posted the picture, I did not notice the flag in the background."

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the group's "perceptions of tyranny emanate from the radical conspiracy theories and paranoia rooted in the decades-old antigovernment extremist movement, and have repeatedly led to violence against America’s law enforcement, citizens and residents."

Hernandez is Tudor Dixon's running mate and was nominated to be the Republican lieutenant governor candidate in August.