Jennifer Zimmerman, the Democrat challenging Rep. Matt Gaetz in the upcoming election, claimed the Republican congressman "dishonored" her Jewish relatives after it was reported he attended a fundraiser with the same alt-right activist and Holocaust-denier who he had invited to the State of the Union.

The left-leaning publication Mother Jones reported Thursday that Gaetz attended a fundraiser in July in Newport Beach, California, on a yacht with Charles Johnson, who has made racist and inflammatory statements online, including rejecting the number of people killed in the Holocaust.

Johnson attended President Donald Trump's State of the Union address to Congress in January with a ticket from Gaetz.

More:Rep. Matt Gaetz under fire for inviting alt-right white nationalist to State of the Union

At the time, Gaetz told the News Journal that the ticket was meant for his father, former Florida Senate President Don Gaetz, but his father wasn't able to attend because he was sick.

"I would have preferred to bring a Northwest Floridian, but I didn't have enough notice with my dad getting a little sick there at the last minute," Gaetz said in a text message to the News Journal in January. "(Johnson) was in my office at the time and wanted to go. I obviously don't agree with some of the things he has said, many of which I've only learned of today."

The Mother Jones article was published just as Gaetz's Medical Cannabis Research Act passed a key vote in the House Judiciary Committee.

Kip Talley, Gaetz's chief of staff, told the News Journal in an email that Gaetz was not available for an interview on either subject Friday.

"We do not comment on attendees to private events," Talley said. "Congressman Gaetz has never received a contribution from Charles Johnson."

After the State of the Union address, Johnson denied being a Holocaust denier, but in 2017, he answered an "Ask Me Anything" session on Reddit where he said he never believed 6 million people were killed in the Holocaust and said there were no gas chambers at Auschwitz.

Zimmerman, whose husband is Jewish, posted the Mother Jones story of Facebook on Thursday with photos of her family celebrating a Jewish holiday.

"This is your elected representative who chooses to spend the day with a known Holocaust denier instead of fulfilling his obligation to uphold the dignity of his constituents," Zimmerman wrote. "Whose interest does he truly represent?"

In a written statement to the News Journal, Zimmerman said she was "deeply troubled" by Gaetz's representation of District 1 in "such a reckless and disreputable fashion."

“I find it inconceivable that Gaetz feels entitled to skip candidate forums in his district in favor of fraternizing with Holocaust deniers," Zimmerman said in the statement. "The people of Northwest Florida deserve better."

The candidate forum she mentioned was on July 20 in Pensacola and was hosted by the Panhandle Tiger Bay Club, the same day Mother Jones reported the fundraiser took place.

Zimmerman also tweeted Friday about the fundraiser.

"My Jewish husband's father served in Europe & my father served in Pacific, becoming a POW," Zimmerman wrote on Twitter. "Those brave men & women who gave their all to save humanity. Mr. Gaetz has dishonored all of them."

Zimmerman won the Democratic primary in August after she beat Phil Ehr by 20 points.

Gaetz easily won the Republican primary against challenger Cris Dosev in August, and Florida's 1st Congressional District is considered a safe Republican seat. ABC News' political forecasting site FiveThirtyEight gave Gaetz a greater than 99.9 percent chance of winning in November against Zimmerman.

Jim Little can be reached at jwlittle@pnj.com or 850-208-9827.