House approves annual day of remembrance for fallen conservative icon Charlie Kirk

Slain conservative commentator and activist Charlie Kirk is one step closer to having his life commemorated every year in Florida, where he once had a home.

By an 82-31 vote, the House approved Rep. Yvette Benarroch’s bill (HB 125) requiring the Governor to issue a proclamation every Oct. 14 — Kirk’s birthday — for the “Charlie Kirk Day of Remembrance.”

The sponsor called it a “narrow bill” without mandate or financial obligation, a tribute to First Amendment rights.

This bill is part of several efforts to remember the founder of Turning Point USA after his assassination last year while speaking to students on a university campus in Nevada, an act of shocking political violence that galvanized the Right.

Legislators considered an amendment to give George Floyd co-billing on the honor, but the supermajority Republican House predictably voted that change down, leaving the bill as is.

Democrats peppered Benarroch with questions about Kirk’s residency and voting, the legitimate state interest of the bill, and why Kirk was worthy of an honorary day.

Some also said Kirk was “mediocre at best,” took him to task for provocative statements he made in a professional capacity about Black political leaders being products of affirmative action and about how the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a mistake, and questioned the framing of his death as an assassination.

Republicans, however, prevailed after structured debate ended.

Republican Rep. Chase Tramont said the attacks on Kirk as a racist were “the typical greatest hits against conservative leaders” and were decontextualized distortions of his positions.

“As a woman of color that knew Charlie Kirk, it is upsetting to hear these attacks against him,” added Republican Rep. Kiyan Michael.

A proposed road renaming in Miami-Dade, an honorary naming of the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative championship trophy, and Attorney General James Uthmeier’s Combat Violent Extremism Portal all exemplify state leaders’ effort to pay tribute to Kirk, a leading advocate for the kind of unapologetic conservatism Florida Republicans embrace.

The Senate companion bill is on second reading, but when it is taken up finally, the House companion bill passed today will be substituted.