Republican congressman posts bizarre photoshopped image of JD Vance, becomes instant meme

A Republican’s bizarre post about Donald Trump’s running mate has backfired spectacularly, unleashing the ruthless power of social media.

It’s just getting weird now.

Republican Congressman Mike Collins has stirred up a storm on social media after sharing a digitally altered image of vice-presidential candidate JD Vance.

The Georgia representative posted the image on his X account the morning after Mr Vance, 40, debated Minnesota Governor Tim Walz at CBS Studios in New York.

Some say Mr Collins was likely trying to find a funny way to reflect Vance’s debate success with the enhanced photo, but the post ended up spiralling out of control.

Social media users quickly mocked the absurdity of the post, with one user commenting, “babe wake up, a sitting congressman just yassified JD Vance.”

Others followed suit, sharing their own altered versions of the 2023 Senate photo of Mr Vance, with some adding outrageously large eyebrows, chins and ears.

Republican Congressman Mike Collins posted the digitally altered picture (left) of JD Vance online, sparking much confusion.

Some of the wildest iterations were too grotesque to publish on this news platform.

One person played a game with his followers, telling them he would progressively turn Mr Trump’s vice into an “apple cheeked baby” for every 100 likes on their post.

Social media fact-checkers on X were quick to plaster a “this photo was digitally altered” alert at the bottom of the post.

While the memes flowed from some, most punters sat confused at how bizarre the election had become.

“Good lord, these people are so weird,” one person wrote.

“Bro. You can’t be serious. Did you make JD sexy on your official account? What is wrong with you,” another wrote.

'For every 100 likes I will turn JD Vance into a progressively apple cheeked baby.'

The Republican congressman’s meme unleashed the power of the internet.

Mr Vance won a lot of fans in the debate, but he also copped some heat. A key moment was when he evaded answering whether Donald Trump lost the 2020 election, an issue that remains a touchy subject among the former president’s strongest supporters.

When asked of his thoughts on the matter by Mr Walz, Mr Vance responded, “I’m focused on the future,” prompting Mr Walz to call it a “damning non-answer”.

Social media users had a field day.

Mr Walz later brought up former vice president Mike Pence’s role in certifying the election on January 6, 2021.

“That’s why Mike Pence isn’t on this stage,” he said.

Mr Vance, defending Mr Trump, claimed the former president “peacefully gave over power” on January 20, 2021.

During the debate, Mr Vance also supported Mr Trump’s healthcare proposal from a past debate, dismissing the need for addressing lengthy plans during live discussions.

Originally published as Republican congressman posts bizarre photoshopped image of JD Vance, becomes instant meme