A Black Republican influencer is demanding an apology after she claims she was kicked out of an event supporting MAGA Texas Senate candidate Ken Paxton.
Thelma Louise, who has more than 200,000 followers on TikTok, posted multiple videos claiming she was asked to leave a rally at San Antonio’s Crown Ridge Banquet Hall, along with footage of her tearfully discussing the incident.
“And there’s no one that I can talk to about this?” she asks in one video appearing to show her being escorted out of the building.
“My mouth is wide open right now. I cannot believe that. I really can’t believe this right now,” she adds later in the video. “I did nothing wrong. I was told that Ken Paxton’s campaign manager didn’t want me here. I drove two hours to get here, and I have done nothing but support everyone on the Republican side, and this is how I get treated?”
In another video, Louise confirmed that she was previously a Democrat but left the party two years ago. She said she has since campaigned for Donald Trump and “worked very hard” to promote other members of the Republican Party.
In a follow-up video posted on TikTok on Monday, Louise claimed Paxton’s team had contacted her to explain that she had been asked to leave after being mistaken for an “agitator” paid to work on behalf of Paxton’s Democratic opponent, James Talarico.
“I don’t know if that’s true or not. I don’t know what to believe. Was I the only black woman in the building? Absolutely, I was,” she said.
“Have I also been a Ken Paxton supporter? Absolutely. Have there been other people that have been paid agitators? There obviously have been.”
Louise added that she hopes to speak “one on one” with Paxton soon about the incident.
“I want to hear from him. I want to hear from his campaign manager, and despite the fact that they may think that I was a Talarico paid agitator. I still deserve a public apology,” she said.
“But with all that I’ve said, I am in no way leaving my party, and I plan on completely voting red. And if you don’t like it, that’s a personal problem that you’re going to have to deal with.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the offices of Ken Paxton and James Talarico for comment.
Louise’s TikTok account is full of videos discussing her experiences as a Black Republican voter, as well as fawning over MAGA figures such as the president’s 20-year-old son, Barron.
The Texas attorney general’s Senate bid has been dogged by a series of controversies, including leaks of audio of Paxton badmouthing Trump and the White House’s influence on his campaign.
Earlier this month, a video also emerged showing Paxton attending a New Year’s Eve party in Dubai with two fugitives wanted on federal fraud charges and the woman he was having an alleged extramarital affair with at the time.
Multiple polls have shown Talarico leading Paxton in the crucial Texas Senate race. If Talarico becomes the first Democrat to win a statewide election in Texas in 32 years, it would give the Democratic Party a significant boost in its efforts to flip control of the Senate in November.
