Following the tragic passing of her husband, Charlie Kirk, the right-wing activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, Erika Kirk has been under the spotlight.
Kirk was shot in the neck on September 10, 2025, during a debate event while speaking before a large crowd at Utah Valley University (UVU). He and Erika shared two children together, a daughter and a son.
In the meantime, Erika has been present in the media as never before, continuing her husband’s legacy.
In fact, shortly after the tragic event during which Charlie lost his life, Erika announced she would be taking the position of a CEO of her late husband’s non-profit organization.
“The Charlie Kirk Show is not going anywhere,” Erika Kirk said at the time. “My husband’s voice will live on. The show will go on. We will have rotating hosts, rotating casts, rotating people coming on. It is going to be continually the north star of the conservative movement, of the voice of the youth, of the voice of the base, and that will not end.”
Most recently, Erika Kirk appeared at the State of the Union event in the United States on Tuesday night.
During the event, President Donald Trump, who had been very close to late Charlie Kirk, praised him in his address to the nation.
Trump stated that Charlie was a “martyr” for his faith, crediting him with renewing religion in the US.
“I’m very proud to say that during my time in office, both the first four years, and in particular this last year, there has been a tremendous renewal in religion, faith, Christianity and belief in God,” Donald Trump said. “This is especially true among young people, and a big part of that had to do with my great friend Charlie Kirk, great guy.”
As Trump talked about Charlie, the cameras cut to Erika, who could be seen wiping her tears. Trump then asked her to stand up so that the audience could see her.
“Erika has been through a lot. In Charlie’s memory, we must all come together to reaffirm that America is one nation under God, and we must totally reject political violence of any kind,” Donald Trump said.
While Erika’s tears and emotional reaction seemed genuine to many, there were also those who claimed that something about her tears and her facial expression suggested something was off.
One person wrote: “She knows the camera is on and she starts acting. Right on cue.”
“She goes from calm to trying to cry… so embarrassing and cringe,” another wrote.
A third asked: “Can anyone tell me she is crying or happy?”
Others used harsh words, such as calling Erica Kirk’s reaction “fake.”
One user even claimed, “It was PR stunt knowing sht comes out tm, and it’s really gross they are using Charlie’s death like this.”
As expected, there were also those who were quick to defend Erika on the social media.
“Will you all stop hating on this woman … seriously. Not all people grieve the same,” one person commented.
“Extremely unpopular opinion: I think Erika really just deals with pain through faith and that looks weird to people,” another added.
This isn’t the first time Erika Kirk to be criticized by the public. At one point, she received backlash for her smiling demeanor when she’s in public.
Among those who questioned Erika’s behavior was conservative commentator Candace Owens, who claimed she has been focusing on photoshoots shortly after her husband died instead of demanding public accountability for his death.
Erika responded to the criticism, saying there’s “no linear blueprint for grief.”
“One day you’re collapsed on the floor crying out the name Jesus in between labored breaths,” she wrote. “The next you’re playing with your children in the living room, surrounded by family photos, and feeling a rush of something you can only attempt to define as divinely planted and bittersweet joy as a smile breaks through on your face.”
She continued: “They say time heals. But love doesn’t ask to be healed. Love asks to be remembered.”
Charlie Kirk’s widow added: “I carry my Charlie in every breath, in every ache, and in every quiet act of day-to-day living as I attempt to relearn what that rhythm will be.”
During an appearance on Megyn Kelly Live at the Desert Diamond Arena, Erika appeared in a black lace suit featuring sheer sleeves and trousers. She finished her look with bold, oversized rings on every finger and stacks of layered bracelets.
“Is this a lace pantsuit?” one person asked. Another added: “Erika Kirk is wearing a full on see through lace pant suit btw [sic].”
“It’s odd to wear see-through lace black outfits while ‘mourning’ your husband and never actually crying real tears,” one person wrote on X.
“Why does she sound like she’s reading from a script?” another remarked.
People also commented on the size of her many rings. “Those big golden rings are too much, aren’t they? I try to empathize with her but it is hard,” one viewer commented. Another added, “What is with the gaudy rings?”
Erika also received backlash when she and Vice President JD Vance shared an emotional hug and she touched the back of his head, a moment she discussed with Kelly. “Anyone whom I have hugged, that I have touched the back of your head when I hug you, I always say, ‘God bless you,’” she said. “Whoever is hating on a hug needs a hug themselves.”
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