A Turning Point USA campus leader is walking away, and her resignation is creating another headache for the conservative youth group.
Caroline Mattox, the former president of the University of Georgia’s TPUSA chapter, resigned just days after Vice President J.D. Vance visited the campus chapter. The event reportedly drew a weak crowd, with the arena only about a quarter full.
Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk had been scheduled to appear at the event, too. She did not attend, citing security concerns at the last minute.
Now Mattox is saying the group has lost its way.
Mattox Says TPUSA Lost Its Original Mission
In her resignation letter, Mattox wrote that joining TPUSA had once been “a dream” of hers. She said that changed after founder Charlie Kirk died last year.
According to Mattox, Vance’s visit made it “abundantly clear” that “TPUSA’s mission and purpose have been lost along the way.”
“It became evident to me that the organization’s current direction no longer aligns with the principles upon which it was founded,” she wrote. “I witnessed firsthand what I believe to be the organization’s true direction following Charlie’s passing, and I have significant concerns about its messaging and current trajectory.”
She continued, “In light of this, I am resigning from my position as president of the Turning Point USA chapter at the University of Georgia.”
Mattox said she was grateful for the people and lessons connected to the chapter, but could no longer represent a group she believes has “strayed so far from its original purpose and principles.”
Low Turnout Became Part Of The Fight
The poor turnout at Vance’s event quickly became a major talking point.
TPUSA’s Andrew Kolvet, who took over Charlie Kirk’s podcast after Kirk was killed last year, tried to explain the empty seats by blaming left-wing protesters. He claimed critics had reserved tickets and disrupted the turnout.
Mattox appeared to reject that argument in her letter.
“Charlie spent his life fighting for truth, and I do not believe he would stand for the blatant dishonesty now being spread by the organization that he built,” she wrote.
She also said Charlie’s work was not about “numbers, appearances, or relevance,” but about conversation and encouraging young people to act on their beliefs.
“His mission was never about performing, but about encouraging my generation and future generations to stand up for what is right and fight to save America,” she wrote.
Other Chapters Have Raised Similar Concerns
Mattox is not the only former TPUSA student leader to criticize the group after Charlie Kirk’s death.
The University of Arkansas chapter disbanded days after Erika Kirk visited last month. Its former president, Dino Fantegrossi, expressed similar concerns and said members were “put off by how Charlie Kirk has been used by TPUSA since his assassination.”
The fallout from Vance’s Georgia visit and Erika’s no-show appears to have affected TPUSA’s Spring tour, too. The tour brings conservative personalities to campuses to debate with college students.
At the most recent stop at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, all media were denied access to the event. TPUSA said the press restrictions were tied to the venue they rented. Baylor said expectations had been made clear to TPUSA from the beginning.
For an organization built on the youth’s energy and public confrontation, the Georgia resignation raises an awkward question: are some of its own campus leaders starting to lose faith?
