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A US journalist was shocked when he received a transphobic meme about Caitlyn Jenner from Pennsylvania Gubernatorial candidate Scott Wagner’s political consultant.

The meme was sent to journalist Billy Penn by accident, and was also – seemingly intentionally – shared with a group of top campaign officials.

According to the Evening Sun, political consultant Ray Zaborney sent the meme to four people: Jason High, Wagner’s campaign manager; Jenise Harris, the campaign’s finance director; Shauna Boscaccy, policy director; and reporter Billy Penn.

The transphobic meme features a photograph of Jenner in black and white, with the words: “Believe in something. Even if it means cutting your d**k off” written over it.

It is designed to look like the recent Nike advertisement featuring former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, which references his decision to continue kneeling during the national anthem to protest racism.

After the meme was sent to the reporter in error, Zaborney offered to provide him with information if he would “forget” it was sent.

Zaborney provided a statement to the Evening Sun, saying that he was committed to the LGBT+ community.

“I am a passionate believer in equality for all and have long been an advocate for marriage equality and ending discriminating in all forms against the LGBTQ community,” he added.

The candidate, Scott Wagner, has previously been in hot water for his comments on transgender people.

Last month, while speaking at a campaign event, he said: “It’s real simple. If you’re born with male plumbing, you use the men’s room. If you’re born with female plumbing, you use the ladies’ room. Period.”

At the time, his campaign said that he was fully supportive of transgender people being allowed to use the bathroom of their choice – as long as they had officially changed their gender.

Caitlyn Jenner is a Republican, and recently defended her views, saying it’s a “good thing.”

“I’ve got an in,” she added, however she admitted that the party’s stance on social rights was an issue.

She supported Trump in the 2016 presidential election, however she recently told Variety: “I honestly don’t know what happened when he got in there. It was extraordinarily disappointing.”

Jenner came out as a transgender woman in 2015 in an interview with Vanity Fair.