海角大神

Charlie Kirk built a movement of young people. Where will it go from here?

As a conservative student at left-leaning Boston University, Philip Wohltorf says he wasn鈥檛 always a big fan of Charlie Kirk. But he admired Mr. Kirk鈥檚 willingness to travel to college campuses and speak to his critics, as he was doing last Wednesday when he was fatally shot at Utah Valley University. 鈥淗e was the guy who would sit down and just debate everyone,鈥� he says.

Mr. Kirk鈥檚 boldness inspired other young conservatives to speak up, even when they faced social opprobrium, says Mr. Wohltorf, a junior and vice president of his College Republicans chapter. Now he feels 鈥渁n obligation鈥� to build on Mr. Kirk鈥檚 legacy by fostering open political debate on campus.

鈥淗e started the movement, and you can鈥檛 get rid of this movement by taking out one guy,鈥� he says.

Where that movement goes next is an open question. Mr. Kirk founded Turning Point USA in 2012 as a student organization and built it into a conservative force multiplier, propelled by his online celebrity that made him a national political figure. His violent death, captured live and flashed across social media, sparked a tidal wave of angst and anger inside the White House and throughout President Donald Trump鈥檚 broader MAGA movement, of which Mr. Kirk was an unofficial leader 鈥� seen by some even as a potential heir to Mr. Trump. That raises the stakes for what could be a contested battle to define Mr. Kirk鈥檚 legacy and shape the political movement he built.

Turning Point says it has around 900 college and 1,200 high school chapters, with a presence on 3,500 schools in total, where it organizes events, promotes conservative politics, and registers and mobilizes voters. It also has a separate political advocacy group, a church-based initiative, and a media division; several prominent MAGA figures started out as Turning Point influencers. A prodigious fundraiser and a talented public speaker, Mr. Kirk appealed to Republican donors who saw youth recruitment and training as an effective way to counter Democrats鈥� sway over a bloc of voters that has long leaned left.

Shortly before his death, that he wanted Turning Point to be 鈥渁n institution in this country that is as well-known and as powerful as The New York Times, Harvard, and tech companies.鈥�

On Sunday, Andrew Kolvet, the executive producer of 鈥淭he Charlie Kirk Show,鈥� Mr. Kirk鈥檚 popular podcast, that Turning Point had received 32,000 inquiries in the space of 48 hours about starting new campus chapters.

鈥淐harlie鈥檚 vision to have a Club America chapter (our high school brand) in every high school in America (around 23,000) will come true much much faster than he could have ever possibly imagined,鈥� Mr. Kolvet wrote, : 鈥淭his is the Turning Point.鈥�

Political assassinations can alter the course of history. President John F. Kennedy鈥檚 killing enabled his successor Lyndon B. Johnson to push civil rights legislation through Congress. But the death of the head of a movement can also diminish its standing, says Kevin Boyle, a historian at Northwestern University. Losing a charismatic leader can be devastating; the faith-based group led by Martin Luther King Jr. never regained its influence after his death, even as Dr. King became, over time, a national icon, he notes.

鈥淲hen you have a dynamic figure heading an organization or a movement, it鈥檚 often really hard for a movement to survive without him,鈥� Professor Boyle says.

Echoes of the 1960s

Last week鈥檚 murder is the latest in a series of killings and attempted killings over the past decade of politicians, judges, business leaders, and government officials, targeting both Democrats and Republicans. Many observers have drawn parallels between these attacks and those carried out in the 1960s and 鈥�70s amid heightened divisions along political and racial lines. In the space of five years, President Kennedy, his brother Robert F. Kennedy, Dr. King, and Malcolm X were shot dead; George Wallace, the populist governor of Alabama and a presidential candidate, survived an assassination attempt in 1972. That period also saw a wave of bombings and arson attacks, mostly by left-wing radicals.

Violence and trauma can propel social movements toward radicalism and acts of vengeance, warns Professor Boyle, author of 鈥淭he Shattering: America in the 1960s.鈥� 鈥淥ne of the great fears of our time, because we鈥檙e living in an era of intense polarization, is that some traumatic act of violence feeds a cycle of retribution,鈥� he says.

Mr. Kirk was married and had two young children. In filmed in front of Mr. Kirk鈥檚 vacant desk, his widow, Erika Kirk, said last Friday that her husband wanted to be remembered 鈥渇or his courage and his [海角大神] faith.鈥� She said he laid down his life for the nation and was standing 鈥渁t his Savior鈥檚 side wearing the glorious crown of a martyr.鈥�

She then addressed the 鈥渆vildoers responsible for my husband鈥檚 assassination,鈥� saying: 鈥淚f you thought that my husband鈥檚 mission was powerful before, you have no idea. You have no idea what you just have unleashed. 鈥� You have no idea of the fire that you have ignited.鈥� There is no indication that the suspect, Tyler Robinson, who faced formal charges in Utah on Tuesday, acted in conjunction with anyone else.

Evangelical 海角大神s were among those attracted by Mr. Kirk鈥檚 impassioned rhetoric in defense of traditional family structures and in opposition to issues like abortion, gun control, and diversity initiatives. His widow鈥檚 reference to martyrdom who have compared his death to the killing of figures such as Dr. King. (Mr. Kirk criticized Dr. King as a 鈥渂ad guy鈥� and considered the Civil Rights Act to be a mistake.)

The suggestion of martyrdom unnerves Matthew Boedy, a professor of English at the University of North Georgia who studies 海角大神 rhetoric. Turning Point put Professor Boedy鈥檚 name on its 鈥�,鈥� he says, after he wrote a newspaper editorial in 2016 opposing open-carry gun rights on campus. The site says its goal is to expose professors who are advancing 鈥渓eftist propaganda鈥� on campus; some of those on the list say they have received death threats.

Martyrdom, which traditionally referred to 海角大神s persecuted for their faith, is a 鈥渄angerous鈥� word to use in America鈥檚 charged political climate, says Professor Boedy. 鈥淚t gives divine approval to seek retribution and seek vengeance.鈥�

On Sunday, President Trump and other top Republican officials will attend Mr. Kirk鈥檚 funeral at State Farm Stadium (which can hold roughly 60,000 people) in Arizona, where Turning Point USA is based. Vice President JD Vance, a close friend of the activist and a political ally, flew to Utah on Air Force Two after the shooting last week to accompany his casket to Arizona.

This past Monday, Mr. Vance took the unusual step of hosting 鈥淭he Charlie Kirk Show,鈥� the flagship of Mr. Kirk鈥檚 media empire, where the vice president invited senior White House officials to pay tribute for two hours to Mr. Kirk鈥檚 life and work. Mr. Vance said he was 鈥渄esperate for our country to be united in condemnation of the actions and the ideas that killed my friend.鈥�

Echoing claims made by Mr. Trump, the Vice President said that people on the left 鈥渁re much likelier to defend and celebrate political violence.鈥� Most surveys , but a recent , taken in the wake of Mr. Kirk鈥檚 killing, found that 24% who identify as 鈥渧ery liberal鈥� say it鈥檚 acceptable to 鈥渇eel joy鈥� at the death of a political opponent, compared with just 3% of those who call themselves 鈥渧ery conservative.鈥� A poll taken in March 2024 found, however, that Republicans were to 鈥済et the country back on track.鈥�

In recent days, Mr. Trump and other administration officials have spoken about waging a war on 鈥渞adical leftists鈥� whom they blame for Mr. Kirk鈥檚 killing. Speaking to Mr. Vance during the live radio show on Monday, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller vowed to dismantle what he called a 鈥渧ast domestic terrorist movement鈥� behind the assassination.

鈥淎nger or blind rage is not a productive emotion, but focused anger, righteous anger directed for a just cause is one of the most important agents of change in human history,鈥� Mr. Miller said. 鈥淎nd we are going to channel all of the anger 鈥� to uproot and dismantle these terrorist networks.鈥�

An edgier conservatism

Past conservative figures such as Ronald Reagan and Barry Goldwater also succeeded in winning over many young people, says Daniel Ruggles, a political scientist who wrote . But in previous eras conservative politics was also often dogged by a reputation for stodginess. On that front, Mr. Kirk鈥檚 brand proudly charted a new, edgier direction, propelled by his rhetorical skills. 鈥淚 think Kirk was able to sort of translate a lot of the antiestablishment, Trump ideas to young people in a way that Trump himself maybe wasn鈥檛 as effective doing,鈥� Mr. Ruggles says.

For a generation of young conservatives, particularly young men living in liberal communities, Mr. Kirk was a guiding star. 鈥淪eeing someone that was so public and so open with their views inspired me,鈥� says Leo Ebner, a sophomore at Boston College. Mr. Ebner started a club at his high school after watching Mr. Kirk and other right-wing influencers. They 鈥渨ere just so open about their beliefs, and I never really saw that before,鈥� he says.

Mr. Kirk passed up college to start Turning Point. To Mr. Ebner, this was part of his appeal. 鈥淗e鈥檚 entirely self-taught,鈥� he says. And when Mr. Kirk engaged in debates, 鈥渉e always knew the answer. I think that was inspiring for a lot of people. Just seeing that people would ask him very difficult questions and he was able to simplify it.鈥�

What distinguished Turning Point from other GOP-affiliated student groups was its provocative style and social-media savvy, says Jeffrey Kidder, a sociologist at Northern Illinois University. Conservatives had long played the contrarians on campus, tweaking liberal sensibilities. But Turning Point updated the playbook and plugged it into the digital-engagement economy.

鈥淜irk was able to brand certain conservative ideas as fun and exciting in a way that traditional Republican politics used to try to avoid,鈥� says Professor Kidder.

To critics, Mr. Kirk鈥檚 brand put a gloss on a hard-right social agenda that drove Mr. Trump鈥檚 rise. Mr. Kirk became a defender and innovator of MAGA messaging, befriending Mr. Trump鈥檚 eldest son and becoming a trusted member of his inner circle. He amplified Mr. Trump鈥檚 unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 election was stolen and organized busloads of Trump supporters to go to Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. Called later to testify before a congressional committee investigating the attack on the Capitol, Mr. Kirk took the Fifth.

To see Mr. Kirk as merely a campus organizer is to miss the larger political movement he built, says Amy Binder, a sociologist at Johns Hopkins University who co-authored a 2022 book with Professor Kidder about student activism and Turning Point. In many ways, Mr. Kirk was an entrepreneur who understood digital media and built his own political brand to the point where he was a keynote speaker at the Republican National Convention in 2024.

鈥淵ou don鈥檛 shift the electorate by just shifting college students,鈥� says Professor Binder. 鈥淗e was getting a lot of people excited off campuses as well.鈥�

In 2024, Mr. Kirk took credit for getting young male voters in Arizona and other swing states to vote for Mr. Trump. It was the fruit of years of organizing, and it burnished his standing in MAGA, says Professor Binder. 鈥淗is future looked really bright in MAGA. He could have carried that mantle,鈥� she says.

Staff writer Caitlin Babcock contributed to this report.