RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina Republican Party has apologized to the Democratic vice presidential nominee for mocking him for wearing what it thought was a lapel pin of the Honduran flag.

The pin was in fact a symbol worn by families of military service members and was worn by Kaine during his acceptance speech Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention. His son is deployed with the U.S. Marines.

The party tweet said the pin was "shameful." It was later deleted.

State GOP Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse said in a statement Thursday that the party offered its sincere and unqualified apology to Kaine. He said the tweet was "wrong on the facts" and "wrong in tone."

Kaine spent a year in Honduras as a missionary. A reporter in New York had pointed out the mistake on Twitter.