STD-Themed Drag Queen Comes After Republicans Over Dem Attack Ad

A drag performer who goes by the stage name “Chlamydia Berns” is raising money to fight back against a Republican campaign ad featuring a photograph of him alongside Democratic congressional candidate Paige Cognetti. 

Cognetti, the Democratic mayor of Scranton, Pennsylvania, is challenging Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan in the state’s competitive 8th Congressional District.

The dispute began after Bresnahan and the National Republican Congressional Committee launched an advertisement earlier this month attacking Cognetti’s record and political affiliations. The ad features a photograph of Cognetti standing beside Frank Carey, a local drag performer who performs as “Lady Lydia,” and more provocatively, “Chlamydia Berns.”

The photo was taken at Scranton’s 2025 Pride flag-raising ceremony, where Carey performed “Rainbow Connection,” and was later published on the city’s social media accounts. The ad describes Cognetti as “a member of the radical group trying to force grown men in girls’ bathrooms and women’s sports.”

Carey subsequently launched a GoFundMe campaign that has raised more than $2,000 for potential legal fees.

“This was certainly never a situation I expected to find myself in,” Carey wrote on Facebook, “But sometimes you have to stand up and say enough is enough.”

“This Queen isn’t going quietly,” he added.

Carey has said the advertisement misrepresents him, noting that he is a man who performs in drag and does not identify as transgender. He said he supports transgender-identifying people but uses men’s restrooms even while performing.

He also said he was appearing as Lady Lydia, which he describes as his “family-friendly” drag persona, at the Pride event rather than as Chlamydia Berns. Local news coverage of the event shows children were present.

The Republicans, meanwhile, have repeatedly pointed to Carey’s other stage name in defending the advertisement.

“Paige Cognetti owes voters answers for her voluntary association with activist groups who are pushing sex change surgeries for kids and why she chose to appear with someone who refers to themselves as ‘Chlamydia Berns’ at an event with small children present,” NRCC spokesman Reilly Richardson told the Scranton Times-Tribune.

Cognetti’s campaign has repeatedly declined to comment on the controversy, despite requests from multiple local news organizations.

The fight has since expanded beyond the original advertisement. Democratic allies have sought to turn the issue back on Bresnahan, highlighting photographs of the Republican congressman participating in events involving drag performers and LGBTQ-friendly organizations.

Bresnahan and his wife attended a 2023 fundraiser for the KISS Theatre Company in Wilkes-Barre, where Carey was then a member. Democrats have also circulated photographs of Bresnahan wearing bright pink heels at a breast cancer awareness event.

Carey has said he supports Cognetti but did not intend to become involved in the congressional race.

“I know and support trans people,” Carey said, while emphasizing that drag performance and transgender identity are separate things.

Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District includes Lackawanna, Wayne and Pike counties and portions of Luzerne and Monroe counties. The Bresnahan campaign has used the controversy to argue that Cognetti is too far to the left for the district.