In one of the weirdest controversies yet surrounding the youngest ever United States Congresswoman, a photo circulating that claimed to be of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s toes and legs in a bathtub has been proven to be a case of mistaken identity.

The photo in question, which was originally shared on Reddit and 4Chan, shows a woman’s feet and legs in a bathtub.

However, despite users suggesting the photo was originally uploaded by the New York Congresswoman to Instagram in 2016, as it was overlaid with the text “alexandria ocasio-cortez.instagram.post.9-3-2016,” a site dedicated to foot fetish photos was able to prove otherwise – with the photo actually belonging to model and political activist Sydney Leathers, Vice reported.

A 'Wikifeet' forum user was able to answer the question of whether it was actually Ms Ocasio-Cortez’s feet pictured by cross-referencing existing photos of the Congresswoman’s feet in sandals on Wikifeet with the circulating photo.

According to the user who pointed out that it was not Ms Ocasio-Cortez in the photo – it was as simple as noticing the differences in how the pictured feet were flexed and the length of the toes compared to what the politician’s feet actually look like.

“Because we can’t dorsi- or plantar-flex our second to fifth toes independently I knew it wasn’t a matter of the toe being bent,” the Wikifeet member explained to Vice. “I thought that maybe she has some form of brachydactyly but her Wikifeet page has clear evidence to the contrary. So it was clear to me that it wasn’t her feet.”

Brachydactyly is an inherited condition that results in the shortening of fingers and toes due to unusually short bones.

Leathers confirmed the photo belongs to her in a blog post on Washington Babylon, where she also apologised to the Congresswoman for the confusion.

“So I’m deeply sorry to her that internet misogynists used an old photo of mine to try and target her,” she wrote.

This is the latest attempt to shame Ms Ocasio-Cortez, after a video of the politician dancing on a roof resurfaced.

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