Already reeling, Democrat Heidi Heitkamp’s bid to hold on to her Senate seat in North Dakota has taken an enormous self-inflicted blow from — in the senator’s own words — a “colossal and huge mistake” of outing sexual assault survivors.

The debacle started as an attempt to call out her Republican opponent, Rep. Kevin Cramer (shown above right), in a #MeToo moment.

It backfired when the “open letter” to Cramer published in several newspapers on Sunday contained the initials of sexual assault victims who had not given their permission to go public.

“That is a colossal and huge mistake for which I will undoubtedly — you know, you know — have reputational injury as a result of it,” a contrite Heitkamp told WZFG 1100 AM in Fargo on Tuesday.

Heitkamp (above left) apologized to host Scott Hennen.

“The only thing I can say is, I am so sorry. I’m not gonna ask for forgiveness, but I want to know what we can do to fix this,” she said. “And so, it’s not — I’m not minimizing in any way, Scott, this event. I think that this is horrible.”

“The only thing I can say is I am so sorry. I’m not gonna ask for forgiveness, but I want to know what we can do to fix this.”

Heitkamp’s campaign already was in trouble. The last two polls show her trailing Cramer by double-digit margins. In addition, she voted against the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who is popular in the state.

Cramer on Tuesday did not pass up the opportunity to twist the knife.

He called it a “revictimization” of the victims.

“This is what happens when desperate people do things for their own personal political gain,” he told the Associated Press. “She proved a point that her personal politics matter more than someone’s personal pain.”

Who do you think would win the Presidency?

By completing the poll, you agree to receive emails from LifeZette, occasional offers from our partners and that you've read and agree to our privacy policy and legal statement.

Lexi Zhorela, a single mother from Bismarck, who was included in Heitkamp’s open letter, told AP that she learned of the ad on Monday night and that she was “furious.”

She said she had planned to vote for Heitkamp but now will not.

Related: ‘Desperate’ Democrats Pushing Away Voters, Newt Says

She told AP that she had been tagged in a Facebook post by a friend who knew she had been the victim of sexual assault.

“I have only shared my story with a couple of people in confidence,” she said. “I didn’t want it blasted for the world to see.”

In addition to exposing sexual assault victims against their will, according to AP, the ad also included women who were not even sexual assault victims.

A win by Cramer greatly would complicate Democratic efforts to win back the Senate.