Controversy Erupts as Turning Point USA Backs Political Candidate

Turning Point USA’s political branch, Turning Point Action, has sparked a new wave of controversy with its recent slate of endorsements for the Texas primary elections.

The group has thrown its support behind Ken Paxton, the current Attorney General of Texas, in his challenging primary race against sitting Senator John Cornyn.

This endorsement of Paxton is seen by some as a direct challenge to the values championed by the late Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA. Kirk was known for advocating Judeo-Christian principles and urging young conservatives to marry and start families.

“Approach marriage as a covenant, not merely a contract,” Kirk advised at one of his events prior to his passing.

Ken Paxton’s political career has been overshadowed by accusations of corruption, an impeachment trial from which he emerged acquitted, and several allegations of infidelity. Notably, an affair with a Christian influencer reportedly led to his wife Angela filing for divorce last year.

The endorsement came hours after a University of Houston poll showed Paxton leading the Texas primary with 38 percent and Cornyn at 31 percent, with Congressman Wesley Hunt in 3rd with 17 percent. 

That poll also showed Paxton besting Cornyn in a potential runoff, 51 percent to 40 percent.

The first round of voting in the Texas primary is March 3, and early voting starts next Tuesday, February 17th. 

Turning Point Action’s endorsement of Ken Paxton

Tracy Duhon, a Christian influencer and mother of seven, one of Paxton’s alleged flings 

Charlie Kirk, and his wife, Erika are seen in this photograph posted to her instagram account 

‘The movement that Charlie Kirk built has inspired millions, and I’m proud to be standing alongside Turning Point Action in carrying on the fight to save this country and defend our freedoms,’ Paxton said in a statement.

Kirk was assassinated during a speaking event on the campus of Utah Valley University last September, and his wife, Erika, has taken over leading the conservative non-profit ever since then. 

TP Action is led by former top Kirk lieutenant Tyler Bowyer, according to the group’s most recent IRS Form 990 filing. 

Bowyer’s own commitment to Kirk’s legacy has been questioned, and Tucker Carlson’s brother Buckley even noted on X this week that TPUSA should have fired @tylerbowyer in late September. Buckley Carlson has also accused Bowyer of sleeping with men in a nasty online attack.

Tucker has been a frequent guest at TPUSA’s events over the last decade and even spoke at Kirk’s memorial service in September.  

Jonah Wendt, communications director for former Vice President Mike Pence’s think tank advancing American freedom, noted the apparent hypocrisy of the endorsement plainly in a post on X: Charlie Kirk: ‘Get married. Have children. Build a legacy.’ Ken Paxton: ‘Cheat on your wife. Get divorced. Run for higher office.’ 

Lawyer Tom Ryan also piled on in his own X post.

‘Wow! Turning Point Action is endorsing for US Senate a guy who has been credibly accused of adultery, securities fraud, and much much more. Good job there TPA! Some real family values you got going there, I see,’ Ryan wrote.

Cornyn campaign senior advisor, Matt Mackowiak, told the Daily Mail ‘Senator Cornyn believes character matters.

He noted that ‘character is on the ballot in this primary,’ when asked to comment on the backlash TP Action has gotten for endorsing Paxton.

Paxton was impeached in 2023 due to claims that he hired a woman with whom he had an affair.   

Paxton’s wife, Texas State Senator Angela Paxton, announced last summer that she was filing for divorce from her husband, and that ‘in light of recent discoveries’ it was not within the best interests of their family for her to remain in the marriage.

Although she attended her then-husband’s impeachment trial, Angela did not vote on the outcome. He was acquitted by the Senate.

On top of infidelity in his marriage, Paxton has also been accused of corruption on several occasions. He has never been convicted of a crime. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to TPUSA, TP Action, and Paxton’s campaign for comment.