Past Student Government campaigns had ties to national conservative group
Several top-ranking FAU Student Government members have taken money from national conservative organization Turning Point USA, but does it matter?
A national conservative group, Turning Point USA, claims to have helped elect over 50 student body presidents in the past two years through campaign donations. Photo courtesy of Flickr
September 17, 2018
Correction | Sept. 17, 4:51 p.m. This story’s headline has been updated to reflect that not all of Student Government has ties to Turning Point USA.
Over the past few years, a conservative group called Turning Point USA has been donating money to college Student Government campaigns across the country.
While SG races rarely raise any funds — especially from outside groups — Turning Point USA thinks they’re worth spending money on. That is, if it can influence students to “fight” the “leftist presence” on their campuses.
Through its “Campus Victory Project,” the organization claims to have helped 54 student body presidents in colleges across the nation assume their role in office since 2016. The group’s ultimate goal is to help elect SG leaders who will push a more conservative agenda.
Thing is, at FAU, they’ve failed.
Since at least 2016, Turning Point USA has donated $3,000 to two FAU SG presidential campaigns. Despite this, both lost. A third presidential hopeful, who won and served in 2017-18, allegedly received money from the group but she’s denying involvement.
While it’s legal for campaigns to accept money from the group, the cash is meant to encourage candidates to pass conservative laws on campus. Yet, in the past two years, FAU’s SG has seen almost no partisan legislation.
From who received campaign money to how it was spent, we detail Turning Point USA’s attempts to influence your Student Government.
The University Press reached out to Turning Point USA multiple times for comment, but did not receive a response as of publication time.
Close, but no cigar
Current Vice President Marianne Alex received $1,400 from Turning Point USA when she ran for president earlier this year, according to SG expense reports. These detail how SG members spend campaign funds during election season.
While running for office, she spent the money on campaign materials. Despite this, the presidential hopeful lost by over 800 votes.
Alex emphasized that the Turning Point USA involvement was nothing more than financial help.
The registered Republican, according to FLVoters.com, said, “They [Turning Point USA] didn’t ask for anything in return, they just like to see more conservative leaders in office.”
Alex is also listed as a member of the FAU Turning Point USA chapter on Owl Central. She attended chapter meetings during the school year, but claims it was only to garner votes while she ran for president.
The University Press reached out to then FAU Turning Point USA chapter President Morgan Sachs for comment as to Alex’s involvement with the organization, but she declined.
FAU associate professor Marshall DeRosa, who was accused of having ties to white nationalism earlier this year, is the adviser of the FAU Turning Point chapter. The UP asked for his comment on Alex’s FAU Turning Point affiliation with the chapter.
He responded, saying, “I appreciate the opportunity but due to my being in the dark about this [it] is probably best that I decline to comment.”
Alex added that she attended a summit for Turning Point USA with former presidential candidate Jon Carter.
“It was very, very right, which I don’t really consider myself,” Alex said of the summit. “I consider myself moderate, but I do have some conservative ideas, some liberal ideas.”
The UP reached out to Carter for comment but he did not respond as of publication time.
Current student body President Kyle MacDonald, who ran and won against Alex, said Turning Point USA was “the only outside group that was involved in this election cycle … I know they were involved simply because of the campaign expense forms provided by Alex …”
Former House Representative and former FAU Turning Point USA chapter treasurer Jabari May said the funding was a “free segue” for Alex to gain victory.
Although, during the special election that followed Alex’s initial loss, she said she did not receive any sort of support from Turning Point USA. This was backed up by the special election expense reports. Alex also lost that election, this time by 179 votes.
As far as MacDonald’s ticket goes, there was no outside help.
“Many student organizations at FAU believed in our cause and supported us. However, we have never taken funding or support from third party groups seeking to influence our governance,” the student body president said.
Another failed run
In spring 2016, registered Republican Kathryn Edmunds received about $1,600 from Turning Point USA, according to SG expense reports. This was during her failed campaign against former President Michael Cairo. Edmunds declined to comment on the matter. She previously served as student body president in 2015.
Former Vice President Juliana Walters, who served under Cairo in 2016-17, said that Edmunds not only received funding, but that Turning Point USA representative Joshua Thifault helped her campaign.
“Kathryn Edmunds … who lost to us that year [2016], were very openly funded by them. Turning Point [USA] had sent Joshua Thifault to campus to organize on their behalf and had stickers/T-shirts made. It was actually super messed up because it’s obviously not a partisan thing,” Walters told the UP.
Thifault, according to his LinkedIn profile, is the director of advancement with Turning Point USA. Listed under his responsibilities is to “identify and empower future leaders of the conservative movement” as well as “contribute to the company’s long-term strategy.”
The UP reached out to Thifault for comment, but did not receive a response as of publication time.
Information without permission?
A leaked document from the New Yorker claims that Turning Point USA had gained a “victory” on FAU’s campus in 2016. The 2016-17 document claimed the “victory” was right around the time former President Emily Lawless took office last year.
Despite this, the registered Republican said she never took money from the organization and wouldn’t comment further.
MacDonald, who served as Lawless’ vice president, said, “I am not sure who they were citing but Emily and I have never been influenced by outside organizations.”
A trend of Turning Point USA allegedly claiming false “victories” isn’t a one-time thing either. University of Florida former student body President Smith Meyers claimed Turning Point USA used his photo and name as a cited victory, even though he said he had nothing to do with the group.
Where FAU Turning Point USA stands
Current FAU Turning Point USA chapter President Elijah Colas said he believes the money Turning Point USA donates to college campaigns is “a good thing,” even if conservative legislation isn’t passed.
Colas noted that “those who are conservative or just students in general have access to election funds.”
“College students don’t make that much money,” he said. “Knowing all students have that kind of access to funds, I think it’s very generous of the national office of Turning Point USA and more students can take advantage of that.”
He believes it’s not Turning Point USA advancing a certain agenda, but students advancing their own.
What is Turning Point USA?
The activist group claims it’s one of the fastest growing “grassroots activist network” in the U.S.
Founded in 2012, the national, nonprofit activism organization identifies as anti-socialism and anti-political correctness.
Its founder, Charlie Kirk, hopes to educate students about the benefits of capitalism and why “big government sucks,” one of its more well-known slogans. The organization also routinely registers students to vote.
One of its main goals is to push back against the leftist movement it maintains has taken over college campuses.
Sophie Siegel is a staff writer for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected].
Robin Lynn Walker • Sep 23, 2018 at 9:20 am
Amen wow ?👀🙏👌
Alex • Sep 17, 2018 at 11:32 pm
Regardless of the background of the author, it’s pretty hard to deny Turning Point USA is nonpartisan. Heck, they basically admit to attempting to advance conservative and/or libertarian values and say outright that they oppose leftist movements.
Sophie Siegel’s background does not matter when an organization literally admits to trying to take over student governments across the country. Let’s cut the BS, ‘Brandon’ and ‘Vincent,’ you’re just ‘triggered’ by the well-researched and -documented history of Turning Point USA’s influence campaign on college campuses across the country, and now at FAU.
Fundamentally, Brandon, the student newspaper is wholly separate from the student government and doesn’t control hundreds of thousands of dollars in the budget. If there’s pay-for-play by ANY side, wouldn’t you want that called out? Vincent, don’t call bias when primary sources are clearly linked.
And to “Normal guy” — ‘failed attempt’ is far from biased, and ‘admitted to’ is valid in this story when an accusation is levied against someone.
This is a well-researched article detailing potential pay-for-play in student government. The fact that it happens to be a conservative and/or libertarian organization is not necessarily important but does follow a larger quid pro quo movement by Republicans and other conservatives in America. For example, see the Koch Foundation’s influence in faculty hiring decisions at George Mason University.
This is about national organizations having control over universities because they have funding. If you support that, then no amount of fact-checking will make you think this is unbiased.
Del • Sep 17, 2018 at 9:04 pm
Turning Point is so Awesome!
Wes • Sep 17, 2018 at 8:55 pm
TPUSA sucks what a bunch of dark money dorks
Constructive criticism • Sep 17, 2018 at 6:25 pm
Can tell this piece was really well researched. Would only suggest running it by someone with more writing experience to tune up some of the sentence structures and make it easier to follow (I.e. what is TPUSA at the top). Other than that, the piece could be submitted for larger scale publication. Nice work and seems fairly balanced given your known affiliation- good job stepping back.
normal guy • Sep 17, 2018 at 6:05 pm
yeah this story is pretty biased the way you frame conservatives as evil (“failed attempt,” “admitted to…,” so on). the whole tone suggests the status quo is to be liberal, and anything else is heresy. very embarrassing attempt at journalism, and you have lost your credibility. shame.
Vincent • Sep 17, 2018 at 6:04 pm
Turning Point USA is a fantastic organization and the fact that the writer, Miss Siegel, is a socialist should only further demonstrate the level of bias going on here. It is not hard to tell the game that is being played. If UPRESS starts posting glowing articles about democratic socialism and all its beauty don’t be surprised.
Brandon • Sep 17, 2018 at 4:54 pm
I wonder what would inspire Sophie Siegel (who has been in leadership of the College Democrats and Young Socialists) to write about students accepting help from a nonpartisan organization? While writing a piece that infers (and condemns) conservatives try to use their platform to influence the student population, Sophie is using her platform to influence the student population. I guess it’s only right if it’s from the left.