Texas Republican called for public execution of Democratic leaders – report

Bo French, running for a seat on Texas's Railroad Commission, faces new scrutiny over old social media posts in which he urged that Democratic officials be put to death, according to a CNN KFile investigation. Party leaders had already begun pulling support after a racist post, with Senator John Cornyn among Republicans declining to back him; the KFile review then surfaced a longer pattern of violent rhetoric, according to The Guardian.

On a now-suspended X account in May 2020, French urged Donald Trump to pursue the death penalty for Obama-era officials he accused of promoting the "Russia hoax," writing that "the death penalty for the Obama conspirators" was needed, in posts that also referenced Barack Obama by name. In February 2025, under a different handle, he wrote that he wanted "public executions," not "perp walks," for officials identified by Elon Musk's Doge initiative, and in a separate post called for the execution of Senator Adam Schiff, who had led the House investigation into Russian election interference.

French's history of inflammatory posts extends beyond calls for violence: he has argued Islam should be banned outright, described childless women as "selfish" and blamed them for cultural decline, and asked followers to weigh whether Jews or Muslims posed the greater threat. The Guardian said it had sought comment from French's campaign, and it remained unclear why his original account was suspended.

Summarized by PolitiKool from The Guardian’s reporting. Read the full story at The Guardian →