Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax denies online allegation; Northam faces growing pressure to resign

TYSONS CORNER, Va. (FOX 5 DC) - Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax released a statement early Monday morning denying an allegation he said was made by an online publication. His statement comes as Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam continues to face pressure to resign after his medical school yearbook page was made public, showing a person in blackface and a person in Klan regalia.

"Lt. Governor Fairfax has an outstanding and well-earned reputation for treating people with dignity and respect. He has never assaulted anyone -- ever -- in any way, shape, or form," the statement read in part.

Report: Gov. Northam held 'urgent' meeting with senior staff Sunday evening

Fairfax's statement also said that the person making the allegation against him approached the Washington Post more than a year ago and that the paper investigated the claim and decided not to publish the story.

The statement issued by Fairfax did not say what specifically the allegation was. "This is part of the sad and dark politics that the Lt. Governor has dedicated himself to helping Virginia and the nation rise above," Fairfax's statement continued.

Northam clung to office Sunday amid nearly unanimous calls from his own party to resign over the racist photo discovered in his 1984 medical school yearbook. Virginia's governor denied being in the yearbook photo even though he had apologized for it Friday and said previously that he was in it.

Over the weekend, the Eastern Virginia Medical School Board of Visitors released a statement saying that they are "committed to discovering quickly how unacceptable photos such as these came to be published in the past."

Should Northam, a Democrat, ultimately step down, Fairfax would become the second black governor in the South since Reconstruction.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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