Virginia Governor Ralph Northam has apologised after his 1984 student yearbook page emerged, showing a photo featuring men in racist costumes.
“I am deeply sorry for the decision I made to appear as I did in this photo and for the hurt that decision caused then and now,” he said in a statement.
Black politicians in Virginia called the image “disgusting” and Republicans urged the Democrat to resign.
The picture showed a man in blackface and another man in Ku Klux Klan robes.
It appeared on a page with other photos of Mr Northam, who was aged about 25 at the time, as well as personal details about him.
He did not elaborate on which costume he was wearing, but said he appeared in a photograph that was “clearly racist and offensive”.
Mr. Northam was elected governor of Virginia in November 2017.
The Ku Klux Klan is one of the oldest and most infamous hate groups in the US, and has targeted African Americans, Jews, Catholics and immigrants, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups.
