Candace Owens Talks With Erika Kirk Release Event

Political analyst Candace Owens hit the ground Erika Kirk by leaving the Turning Point USA event with the Vice President JD Vance at the last minute.

Speaking to X on Tuesday, April 14, hours after Erika, 37, confirmed she was canceling her appearance at the University of Georgia due to an alleged security threat, Owens, 36, said the incidents were falsely reported.

“Stop. This is troubling. You’re out because of bad ticket sales. It’s the same reason TPAith had to “reschedule” the Pastor’s Conference and various other events quietly,” Owens directed Erika, referring to Turning Point USA Faith, part of the organization that made the Progressive Pastors Conference in Texas when it was scheduled for April 21.

Owens’ post was in direct response to Erika’s previous X post announcing her withdrawal from the event. “I was looking forward to tonight’s event at @universityofga with our Vice President @JDVance, but after our family passed, I am taking the recommendations of my security team very seriously,” Erika wrote.

Owens continued, “People don’t believe you and don’t want to represent you because you struggle to tell the truth even about important things. (Charlie Kirkthe founder of Turning Point USA and Erika’s late husband, was killed while speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on September 10, 2025. He was 31 years old.)

Report of Fox 5 Atlanta On Tuesday, Vance, 41, said on stage that he interviewed the Secret Service because of the “threats” directed at Erika.

Owens, who remains at loggerheads with Erika after Charlie’s death, denied the claim, writing in a post, “The Secret Service sits above your security team. If there was a serious threat, the vice president would not be going ahead with the event.”

Owens concluded his performance with a final critique directed at Erika and her team Turning Point USA. “Your immediate threats are the s*** public relations team you hired who continue to operate under the delusion that they are smarter than the public. They are not,” Owens wrote.

A spokesperson for Turning Point USA Andrew Kolvet elaborated on Erika’s no-show when she entered her space at Tuesday’s event. “I’m on stage here in place of our friend Erika Kirk because unfortunately she received serious threats against her, which is very bad,” Kolvet told the crowd. “It’s a very bad picture of the state of reality and the state of the country.”

Vance also commented on Erika’s absence, telling the room, “First of all, I love Erika. And I know she got some threats. And, you know, about two hours ago, Andrew, I was a little worried that we were going to have to cancel the event because Erika wasn’t going to come, and she was really worried about it,” Vance said. “I said, ‘You know what? Let’s let Erika do what she needs to do for herself and her family.’ The people who tell you that Erica was not sad for her husband are full of shit, and we need to be honest. But if your conscience is to follow a young mother because she is sad in a way that you see as wrong, why don’t you stay on your path and mind your own business?”

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Owens and Erika’s rift came to a head when she started sharing thoughts about Charlie’s murder on social media. This post led to Erika asking Owens to “stop” during an interview with her in December 2025 CBS News.

Despite a “very constructive conversation” between the two in the following weeks, Owens continued to speak out against Erika in early 2026, leaking audio of Erika speaking to members of the Turning Point USA team two weeks after Charlie’s death.

At the time, Owens said Erika’s voice sounded “sweet” and “laid back.”