Democrat Staffer Photographed Praying to “Satanic Goat Altar”

A Democratic staffer says she was making a joke when referring to a satanic display at the Michigan Capitol building as “sexy.”

The post, made by Michigan Democrats media production specialist Samantha Skorka, included a photo of her posing with an idol of pagan deity Baphomet on Capitol grounds. The Satanic Temple had placed the idol there in recognition of the holiday season.

“In the name of Satan, I claim the sexy satanic Baphomet goat altar at OUR Michigan Capitol. Amen,” Skorka wrote.

Though she later deleted the post, popular X account Libs of TikTok reposted a screenshot of it, condemning her show of support.

The Satanic Temple of Michigan put up a Satan statue in front of the Michigan Capitol. Michigan Democrat staffer Samantha Skorka @skorkasammi posed with it and praised it calling it “s*xy” before quickly deleting her tweet,” Libs of TikTok wrote. “The internet is forever! . @MIHouseDems support Satan!”

The post earned 1 million views and sparked outrage among commenters. A group of seven Republican state representatives later signed a letter calling for the idol’s removal from Capitol grounds.

Responding to the backlash, Skorka defended her post as only being a joke.

Well clearly you can’t make a joke on the internet anymore [shrug emoji],” she wrote.

Satanic displays have caused a stir across the Midwest recently. In Iowa, another Baphomet idol in the state Capitol was “destroyed beyond repair” amid a controversy surrounding its presence in the building.

In Wisconsin, community members in Ashwaubenon held a prayer vigil outside the National Railroad Museum to oppose an entry in the museum’s Festival of Trees by the Satanic Temple.

The Satanic Temple maintains it does not “worship” Satan, unlike the Church of Satan which it is commonly confused with.

“Satanism provides all that a religion should be without a compulsory attachment to untenable items of faith-based belief,” the group wrote. “It provides a narrative structure by which we contextualize our lives and works. It also provides a body of symbolism and religious practice — a sense of identity, culture, community, and shared values.”