Kelly classmates rebut claim AZ Senate candidate dressed as Hitler in old Halloween photo

Mark Kelly's campaign vehemently denied uncorroborated claims that photos, recently published by a conservative news site, show the former NASA astronaut dressing up for Halloween as Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.

In statements provided by the campaign, four of the Arizona Democratic Senate candidate's classmates at the Merchant Marine Academy said Kelly, who's trying to unseat GOP appointee Martha McSally in a race that could determine control of the Senate, was falsely accused by National File.

"I attended the Merchant Marine Academy with Mark. I attended this event. This is not Mark in any of these photos," said class of 1986 alum Jennifer Boykin.

"I attended this event as well and am in this photo," fellow classmate Ed McDonald added. "This is a group from 2nd Company. Mark was not in 2nd Company, and that is not him in these photos."

Kelly's roommate Mark Baden also denied the veracity of National File's assertions.

"I was the First Rotation Regimental Commander," he said. "These photos are absolutely not Mark Kelly and anyone saying that is lying."

Another classmate - a Republican from Washington state - Peter Lindsey told the Kelly campaign that he had received a message on LinkedIn in September from an individual who "said he was working on a research project" about Kelly's days at the Merchant Marine Academy.

The campaign later identified the person as a paid consultant for a super political action committee -- Senate Leadership Fund -- related to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken. It is spending tens of millions to help defeat the former Navy combat pilot.

The Kelly campaign shared with Fox News screenshots Lindsey provided of the interaction, as well as filing records from the Federal Election Commission showing payments to the PAC worker.

"They shared these photos and asked if the person in the costume was Mark Kelly. I told them no, and want to say again, Mark is not in those photos," Lindsey said. "I have spoken to numerous classmates about this evening, and they concur that he is not in any of these pictures. The people spreading these lies should stop."

Paul Sturm, who was Mark Kelly's classmate for four years at the academy and lived in the same dorm, concurred. "I can unequivocally say that Mark is not in the yearbook photo of my costumed classmates," he said.

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