Ever since Charlie Kirk’s assassination, questions have swirled about what would become of Turning Point USA, the conservative youth group he founded as a teenager.
Once a scrappy startup, it quickly grew into a political juggernaut with hundreds of thousands of members, millions in funding, and a central role in the MAGA movement.
Kirk became one of the right’s most visible personalities — celebrated by supporters as a fearless culture warrior, and criticized by opponents for fueling division with his attacks on diversity initiatives, LGBTQ rights, and abortion. His sudden death not only left a void in the organization’s leadership but also put a spotlight on the future of a platform he turned into one of the most influential forces in youth politics.
Here’s a closer look at the group that propelled him to prominence — and now serves as his legacy.
What is Turning Point USA?
Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is a conservative youth organization founded in 2012 by Kirk, then an 18-year-old activist. Its stated mission is to “identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of fiscal responsibility, free markets, and limited government.”
Since then, TPUSA has grown into one of the most prominent conservative youth organizations in the nation, boasting chapters at 3,500 colleges and high schools in all 50 states. On campuses, members recruit and engage peers by tabling, distributing literature, registering voters, and hosting events. Altogether, the group claims 250,000 members. Kirk was tapping that network at Utah Valley University, kicking off The American Comeback Tour, when he was assassinated.
Kirk himself became a prominent figure on the right, known for his combative debates with students on college campuses and his role as a media personality. Closely aligned with the MAGA movement, the organization played a pivotal role in mobilizing young voter support for Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign.
“Charlie Kirk was adored by folks who shared his vision of America, in which white people were very victimized by efforts to create more diversity and equity. He was despised, feared by folks who were targets of those views,” Kyle Spencer, author of Raising Them Right, told Reuters.
After his death, the group has kept its influence alive — staging large campus events and continuing The Charlie Kirk Show, which reaches more than a million people, with guest hosts including Vice President J.D. Vance.
Who funds TPUSA?
Turning Point USA is set up as a nonprofit, which means it enjoys tax breaks and only has to make limited financial disclosures. Since Kirk founded it in 2012, the group raised a staggering $389 million through mid-2023, according to tax filings.
That multimillion-dollar operation started with just $50,000 from philanthropist Rebecca Dunn and her late husband Bill, a Florida investment manager. Their early investment not only helped Kirk hire staff and open Turning Point’s first office but also lent credibility that attracted other major conservative donors. Rebecca has stayed closely involved, channeling her support through the Dunn Foundation, which has funded a wide range of conservative advocacy groups.
Their support helped open the door to another pivotal backer: $10,000 from fund manager Foster Friess, whom Kirk met at the 2012 Republican National Convention. Friess went on to support the group for years, and after his death, his widow pledged $1 million to expand TPUSA chapters in his memory.
Today, its donor list reads like a who’s who of conservative wealth. The Wayne Duddlesten Foundation, built on Houston real estate money, has given $13.1 million. Other major contributions have come from the family foundation of advertising executive Jack Roth ($8.7 million), Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus ($7.1 million), investment titan Charles B. Johnson and his wife Ann ($4.6 million), and Waste Management founder Dean Buntrock ($4.1 million).
However, much of TPUSA’s funding is more difficult to track. Nonprofits aren’t required to disclose individual donors, and many contributions are routed through donor-advised funds — financial middlemen like DonorsTrust, Fidelity Charitable, and the Bradley Impact Fund. The Bradley Impact Fund alone has funneled more than $23.6 million to TPUSA since 2014. These funds pool money from contributors, but because the donation is recorded under the fund’s name rather than the individual’s, the original source stays hidden. It’s a legal and common structure in the nonprofit world, but one that makes it nearly impossible to know who is truly bankrolling the group.
Who’s in charge of TPUSA now?
Following Kirk’s death, Turning Point USA’s leadership has been passed to his wife, Erika Kirk. The board said it unanimously elected her as CEO and chair — a decision they emphasized reflected Charlie’s own wishes, which he had shared with executives before his death. Erika, for her part, has vowed to carry on his mission. “If you thought my husband’s mission was powerful before, you have no idea,” she declared at his memorial service.
Though long seen as a partner in her husband’s work, Erika has spent more than a decade building a public profile of her own. She first stepped into the spotlight in 2012 when she won the Miss Arizona pageant, then quickly moved into philanthropy by founding Everyday Heroes Like You, a nonprofit that highlights and supports overlooked charities. In 2018, she added an entrepreneurial turn with Proclaim Streetwear, a faith-based clothing company committed to American manufacturing.
Her resume is also stacked with academic credentials: a bachelor’s degree in political science and international relations from Arizona State University, a Juris Master’s in American legal studies from Liberty University, and a doctorate in Christian leadership, with another doctorate in biblical studies currently underway.
While her education and ventures reflect the opportunities feminism has opened for women, Erika has been outspoken about her belief in traditional gender roles. She has urged young women to “submit to a godly man”. She often stresses that marriage and family should take precedence over career ambitions — a philosophy she frames as rooted in biblical teaching rather than subservience.
Whether Erika can maintain her husband’s influence — and the organization’s outsized role in conservative politics — remains to be seen. What’s clear is that with its massive funding base, national reach, and close ties to the MAGA movement, Turning Point USA is poised to remain a powerful force on the American right well beyond Kirk’s lifetime.
