Consider This from NPR - Young Conservatives Are Asking What's Next For the Movement Charlie Kirk Started

Episode Date: September 11, 2025

For many young conservatives, Charlie Kirk was more than just another political activist or online personality.He was the face of their movement -- a glimpse at how life for their generation could look by embracing a more hard-right, MAGA worldview. Charlie Kirk's followers are in shock and grief over his assassination.As they try to make sense of his killing, many are also asking what's next for the movement he started.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at [e-mail] episode was produced by Kai McNamee and Mia Venkat. It was edited by John Ketchum and Courtney Dorning. .Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The first time Charlie Kirk showed up at the conservative political action conference, or CPAC, he made a big impression. It was probably over 10 years ago, and he was so young and had about 25 kids with him. This is CPAC Chairman Matt Schlapp. He was intent on forming a new group and forming a movement, and he did just that and did it with a lot of grace and got the attention of so many people. That group founded in 2012 was called Turning Point USA. In a little more than a decade, it grew to more than 800 college chapters. And that will be part of Charlie Kirk's legacy. He was shot and killed on Wednesday afternoon.

President Trump remembered his friend and ally in remarks Wednesday from the Oval Office. To my great fellow Americans, I am filled with grief and anger at the heinous assassination of Charlie Kirk on a college campus in Utah. Kirk's organizing galvanized young conservatives, making him the face of the youth MAGA movement. Here's how he described Turning Point USA at an event last year. I had the crazy and wild idea as I was driving home from Rockford, Illinois. I said, that's it. I want to try to start a youth organization to try and save Western civilization. Kirk was also a magnet for controversy. His opponents criticized him for some of the positions he took, like his position on abortion.

So you're comparing abortion to the Holocaust. Absolutely, I am. In fact, it's worse. His stance on guns. I think it's worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year, so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights. And his defense of rigid gender roles. But maybe one of the reasons why Taylor Swift has been so just kind of annoyingly liberal over the last couple of years,

is that she's not yet married and she doesn't have children. Consider this. A conservative icon has been killed. What did he mean to the young voters he inspired? From NPR, I'm Ari Shapiro. It's consider this from NPR. For many young conservatives, Charlie Kirk, was more than just another political activist or online personality.

He was the face of their movement, a glimpse at how life for their generation could look by embracing a more hard-right MAGA worldview. The fact that this agenda was anathema to his many progressive critics was the sweetener on top. Today, Kirk's followers are in shock and grief over his assassination on the campus of Utah Valley University on Wednesday. As they try to make sense of Kirk's killing,

many are also asking what's next for the movement he started. NPR political reporter Elena Moore is covering this. Hey Elena. Hey, Ari. You've been following Charlie Kirk for years. He had this huge network of followers. What are you hearing from them today? A lot of his supporters are hurting right now. You know, Kirk was a controversial political figure reviled by many on the left, but he was extremely celebrated by the MAGA movement, especially young organizers and activists who came of age in it. Remember, you know, he had millions of followers and had become a big media personality, but he was also the head of a massive political organizing network and even helped, you know, some folks decide to run for office themselves. That includes Florida Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna. She's 36 and in many ways got her start because of Kirk. When she met him, she was on track to start medical school and ended up scrapping that plan to work for his group, Turning Point USA. I spoke to her this morning and she was very shaken up. I saw a lot of videos online after I had to watch my friend bleed out of people celebrating his death that should be condemned and removed from polite society.

And she told me she really owes her political career to Kirk. And that's a common theme I've heard from many of his followers today that he inspired them. What made him so impactful for young conservatives? He entered the national conversation at a time. time when there weren't a lot of voices like his. He started Turning Point USA in 2012 when he was just 18. And Ari, I mean, think about that time. Former President Obama was extremely popular with young people. And Kirk gave folks a place to really revel in what was then seen as a political counterculture to that. You know, things, I have to say, though, look different now. Kirk has evolved into a close ally. You know, he evolved into a close ally of President Trump and played a key role in helping move many young voters towards the president. And how big is that organization he

started Turning Point in Republican politics today? Oh, it's grown into a massive organization. They report having more than 800 chapters on college campuses. The group has also launched a bunch of connected nonprofits and reported an annual revenue of roughly $100 million. And to fans of Kirk, it's really hard to overstate his influence in developing a new generation of concerns. leaders. This is 33-year-old Hayden Paget, the chairman of the young Republican National Federation. The impact Charlie was building was not about finding politicians and putting him in office today. It was about finding literally millions of young people who otherwise would never have heard conservative ideas and believe them and then now fight for them. And Elena, what was it about the message Kirk was pushing that helped him gain such a big following and influence?

Well, he talked a lot about free speech of court. and free markets and limited government. But he was also a conservative firebrand. And as with the rise of Trump, you know, many of Kirk's ideas became and are now much more mainstream. And since Kirk first came on the scene years ago, you know, the youth vote looks different. Last fall, Trump made serious gains with voters under 30.

The day after the election, I actually spoke with Kirk about this. And I asked him to describe Trump's connection with young people. I asked him, you know, was it about economic concerns, social issues. Here's what he told me. They don't look at it as economic or social. There's one above. They just want to live in the same country as their parents. I don't know if that's a social issue or an economic issue. That's just they want a nice life and they feel it slipping away. They feel as if insanity is creeping into their institutions. And Ari, that message I've heard from him a lot at events

and it's really one the party I think has adopted more broadly. And so now that he's gone, what happens to the void that he leaves behind is the role that he played one that can be filled by someone else? The young Republicans I've spoken with so far say no singular leader can fill Kirk's shoes, so to speak, but young organizers and content creators who were inspired by him seem to be starting that conversation. Bryland Holleyhand is one of those people.

He's 19 and chairs the Republican Party's Youth Advisory Council. He posted a video on social media this morning, calling for Kirk's memory to inspire his generation to get involved now. That is NPR political reporter Elena Moore. Thank you. Thanks, sorry. Before we go, a few quick notes. First, a favor to ask, something you can do to support our work at NPR that costs you absolutely nothing other than a minute or two of your time. If you value the show, help us out and rate and review consider this on the podcast platform where you listen.

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John Ketcham and Courtney Dorney. Our executive producer is Sammy Yenigant. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Ari Shapiro.