“Young Republican Leaders” Group Chat Leaks Hate Speech
The text messages between the leaders of multiple Young Republican groups throughout the country were leaked last week. The messages were released by POLITICO, reporting messages that took place between January to August 2025. Those in this group were members of Republican organizations in New York, Kansas, Arizona, and Vermont. The messages exchanged between groups have troubled people on both sides of the aisle.
The group chat was filled with racist, anti-semitic, and pro-Nazi language. William Hendrix, the Kansas Young Republican’s vice chair, used several racial slurs. Many within the chat referred to African Americans as “monkey people” or “watermelon people.” New York State Republican group member Bobby Walker referred to rape as “epic,” which many in the group chat encouraged. One strand of messages referred to an upcoming vote on the newest chair of the Young Republican National Federation, consisting of 15,000 members across the nation between 18 and 40 years old. Peter Guinta, who was running for the position, said “everyone that votes no is going to the gas chamber” when it came to his chances on the ballot. Many encouraged this language, pushing for new torture methods and loving Hitler.
Specifically, Guitna said, “[I’m] going to create some of the greatest physiological torture methods known to man. We only want true believers.”
Very few Republican politicians have responded to this case, and the White House has not responded to most inquiries on this topic. One Republican politician, Governor Phil Scott of Vermont, has condemned the leaked messages, stating, “The hateful statements made in this group chat are disgusting and unacceptable. The vile, racist, bigoted, and antisemitic dialogue that has been reported is deeply disturbing. There is simply no excuse for it.”
After many of these messages leaked, the New York Republican State Committee has voted to suspend its Young Republicans group. Guinta also lost his position as chief of staff to a New York state assemblyman, a job he had outside of the Republican organization. The Kansas Young Republicans Organization was also disbanded shortly after.
