Logan •As Charlie Kirk’s tour returned to Utah, a crowd came carrying American flags and homemade signs attacking Utah’s governor, many wearing Make America Great Again gear. Some wore white T-shirts with the word “FREEDOM” — identical to the one Kirk was wearing when he was fatally shot at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10.
Utah GOP Gov. Spencer Cox joined a panel of Republican, Latter-day Saint politicians who spoke as Kirk’s “American Comeback Tour” — now the “This is the Turning Point” tour — continued at Utah State University Tuesday, two hours north of where he was killed.
Here are images from before and during the event, held by Kirk’s nonprofit Turning Point USA in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum arena.
[Read more: Speaking in Charlie Kirk’s place, Utah Gov. Cox booed at USU ahead of urging ‘peacemaking’]
The crowd cheered as a man carried Utah’s historical state flag. Since the traditional blue banner with the state seal was replaced in 2023, it has become a pennant for Utahns who fall to the right of many of the state’s elected GOP officials.
Some wore shirts or brought placards with images of social media posts Kirk made attacking Cox, who is often perceived as more moderate than other prominent figures in his party.
In 2022, after Cox vetoed a ban on transgender girls from school sports, Kirk posted, “Utah Governor Spencer Cox should be expelled from the Republican party.”
Cox has since signed and supported multiple laws imposing restrictions on the state’s transgender community, and has retreated from his declarations acknowledging the LGBTQ+ community.