Texas GOP candidate Herrera faces scrutiny over derogatory comments

Brandon Herrera, the Republican candidate vying for a key House seat in Texas's 23rd congressional district, is facing intense scrutiny over a series of derogatory comments made about women and other groups across his social media platforms and videos. Herrera, who has cultivated a rightwing online persona as the 'AK Guy' and hosts a popular YouTube channel with over 4 million subscribers focused on firearms, made insults that have drawn widespread criticism.

Among the comments, a 2023 video featured Herrera stating that a gun range dummy's head was 'full of mush – much like the average Austin feminist.' In a separate 2024 video, he likened the weight of 'angry blue-haired' feminists to that of orca whales and elephants. In 2020, Herrera filmed himself firing a gun at bottles of ranch dressing, subsequently rubbing the condiment on himself and declaring it would 'make me irresistible to the fat bitches.' He also opined on X in 2023 that '4 doors means more whores.'

Other groups have also been targets of Herrera's online content. In 2020, while firing a gun at a ham, he remarked that while purchasing it was expensive, it was 'still cheaper than a homeless person.' This is not the first time Herrera has faced controversy; in 2024, he described a Nazi-era gun as 'the original ghetto blaster,' prompting the Republican Jewish Coalition to condemn him as 'a goose-stepping extremist.'

Herrera has defended his remarks, asserting they were all jokes. He also directed criticism at his opponent in the upcoming midterm election, Democrat Katy Padilla Stout, stating, 'It’s disappointing that CNN would allow someone to allege that jokes about feminism lead to violence when Stout is fighting to return children to the parent convicted of abusing them.' This statement refers to a case where Stout served as a defense attorney for a father seeking to restore parental rights after a domestic abuse allegation.

The past comments could complicate Republican efforts to retain the House seat, which Herrera is contesting following the resignation of Republican lawmaker Tony Gonzales amid a House ethics committee investigation. Although Democrats have not won this district since 2015, it has recently been added to their target list, with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee providing funding to Stout, a former teacher and attorney, amid expectations of a strong year for Democrats.