Conservatives gather at California Capitol to celebrate Charlie Kirk’s birthday
In a steady rain, about 80 faithful from around Northern California congregated outside the California state Capitol on Tuesday in Sacramento to celebrate the 32nd birthday of Charlie Kirk, the MAGA youth pundit who was shot and killed on a college campus last month.
Pro-Trump motorcycle clubs Born to Ride for 45 NorCal and Freedom Riders 1776 hosted a ride and convoy from the Harley-Davidson dealership in Rocklin to the Capitol, where Kirk supporters gathered to celebrate and mourn the man they said was the first Christian executed for his faith in the U.S.
Kirk rose to prominence in the 2010s through his group, Turning Point USA, which advocates for conservative politics on school campuses and often went viral for confronting liberal students and maintaining a database of professors accused of discriminating against conservative students. Kirk’s critics noted that he spread conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and voter fraud.
Kirk, who was based in Arizona, spoke on a number of occasions in the Sacramento area, including at UC Davis in March 2023, where 100 protestors clashed with police, leading to two arrests. An early supporter of Trump, he built an online following that surpassed traditional media and religious organizations.
During the pandemic, Kirk founded Turning Point Faith, which fused his evangelical beliefs into the movement, reflecting young conservatives’ increasing turn towards religion. Kirk was speaking to students at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10 when he was shot dead, which was widely circulated on social media and drew condemnation across the political spectrum including from Gov. Gavin Newsom.
President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and the Republican Party have since claimed Kirk as a martyr, calling for mass firings of people who publicly disavow his far-right views and pledging to crack down on liberal groups they claim helped foment violence against conservatives.
“This is what Charlie did best. He loved people into the kingdom of God, and the enemy couldn’t stand it, so he had to take him out,” said speaker Boomer Bennett. “We’re living in a time when we witnessed the first public execution of a Christian on American soil.”
Utah prosecutors have charged Tyler Robinson, 22, with Kirk’s murder. In court documents, they said Robinson targeted Kirk because he “spread hate.”
Assemblymember Josh Hoover, R-Folsom, told the crowd that he first met Kirk at a Turning Point event in Placer County, where he was struck by Kirk’s “ability to command a room full of adults much older than him, and not just to speak to their lives, but also to inspire them to do more.”
“When I saw people celebrating his assassination, I really feared that we’re reaching a point in our country where political violence was becoming more widely accepted as a way to silence people that we disagree with,” Hoover said. “That is a scenario where everyone loses. That is a scenario where evil ultimately wins.”
Justin Montgomery, president of Born to Ride for 45 NorCal, said he began following Kirk in 2012. He saw the then-19-year-old speaker “as a little brother” who started with a card table and built a national movement encouraging young conservatives to challenge mainstream views.
“Turning Point helps give people an idea that you don’t have to believe one thing, or you don’t have to believe that thing (that’s popular),” Montgomery said.
“You can believe what you want. You know, just follow God, follow our laws, enjoy the world we live in.”
This story was originally published October 14, 2025 at 1:48 PM.
