Angela Stanton-King (born February 19, 1977) is an American author, television personality and conservative speaker based in Atlanta, Georgia.[1] She spent two years in prison for conspiracy and was later pardoned by President Donald Trump a decade after serving her sentence. She subsequently became a media personality and was a main cast member on the third season of the BET docuseries From the Bottom Up. She was the Republican candidate for Georgia's 5th congressional district in the 2020 election, losing to Democrat Nikema Williams.[2] Stanton-King has shown support for QAnon, which espouses a number of far-right conspiracy theories.[3][4]
Angela Stanton-King | |
|---|---|
 Stanton-King in 2020 | |
| Born | February 19, 1977 Cheverly, Maryland, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Media personality, author, speaker |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Aron King |
| Children | 5 |
Early life
editStanton-King was born in Cheverly, Maryland, and grew up in Buffalo, New York. As a child, she also lived in Greensboro, North Carolina,[5] before moving to Atlanta, Georgia as a young adult.
Stanton-King is the goddaughter of Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther King Jr.[6]
Conviction and presidential pardon
editIn 2004, Stanton-King was convicted on federal conspiracy charges for her role in a car theft ring and served two years in prison.[7] She gave birth to a daughter while serving her sentence. Stanton-King was pardoned by President Donald Trump in February 2020.[8]
After her release from prison, Stanton-King became an author (at first under the name Angela Stanton) and a reality show star. She wrote and edited a number of independently published autobiographical books,[9] one of which led to a legal dispute with The Real Housewives of Atlanta star Phaedra Parks suing her for $30 million.[10] She was also a main cast member on the third season of the BET television program From the Bottom Up.[11]
Politics
editOn March 6, 2020, Stanton-King officially launched a campaign to challenge incumbent representative John Lewis for Georgia's 5th congressional district in the 2020 United States House of Representatives elections.[12][13] She won the Republican primary in an uncontested race, with polls indicating Lewis was a heavy favorite in the general election.[14] Lewis died from pancreatic cancer on July 17, 2020, and was replaced on the ballot by Nikema Williams, state senator and chair of the Georgia Democratic Party.[15][16]
On November 3, 2020, Stanton-King was defeated by Williams in a landslide victory for the Democrats, receiving 14.9% of the vote compared to 85.1% received by Williams.[2]
Stanton-King joined a coalition of Black supporters of Donald Trump in 2020.[6][8] She attended an event at the White House in February 2020 alongside Trump to celebrate Black History Month.[17] She supported the First Step Act, which outlawed the handcuffing of women during childbirth. While in prison in 2004, she says she was shackled while giving birth, and that her daughter was "snatched from [her] arms 24 hours later".[18]
She supports the right to vote for anyone released after a felony conviction.[19]
Stanton-King tweeted in support of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'etat, and indicated her support for a military coup in the United States against President Joe Biden.[20][21][22]
Stanton-King has made several anti-LGBTQ statements on Twitter, including comparing the LGBTQ rights movement to pedophilia.[23] She has said that she does not support that her child is transgender.[24][25] Stanton-King appeared on Dr. Phil to discuss her relationship with her child. Stanton-King subsequently threatened to assault transgender advocate Ashlee Marie Preston, who was also invited onto the program. Stanton-King was subsequently banned from Twitter for those threats.[26]
Stanton-King has repeatedly tweeted QAnon slogans and a number of baseless claims.[27][3][28][29] In October 2020, she stormed out of an on-camera interview with The Guardian when asked about her support of the conspiracy theory.[30][31][32] At the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference, she said she supported investigations into certain QAnon claims.[33]
Stanton-King campaigned for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the 2024 United States presidential election. Stanton King stated that the Republican Party was insufficiently "pro-black" and that she admired the Kennedy Family's historic support for civil rights.[34] Stanton-King was appointed the Black voter engagement director for Kennedy's campaign. In April 2024, Stanton-King posted homophobic remarks directed towards a Black conservative supporter of Trump.[35] On May 22, Stanton-King announced that she has stepped down from the campaign.[36]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Rogers, Katie; Taylor, Derrick Bryson; Murphy, Heather (July 11, 2020). "Trump Adds Roger Stone to His List of Pardons and Commutations". The New York Times.
- ^ a b "Georgia Election Results: Fifth Congressional District". The New York Times. November 3, 2020. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
- ^ a b Laughland, Oliver; Silverstone, Tom (October 15, 2020). "Trump ally running for Congress believes in baseless QAnon sex-trafficking conspiracy". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
- ^ Rosenberg, Matthew; Steinhauer, Jennifer (July 14, 2020). "The QAnon Candidates Are Here. Trump Has Paved Their Way". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
- ^ King, Angela Stanton (2019). Life of a Real House Wife. Stanton Publishing House.
- ^ a b Ernie Suggs, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "After getting Trump pardon, Angela Stanton-King sets sights on Lewis". ajc. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
- ^ Suggs, Ernie (March 10, 2020). "After getting Trump pardon, Angela Stanton-King sets sights on Lewis". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
- ^ a b "Angela Stanton-King: Meet the Black Republican Woman Trying to Unseat Civil Rights Icon John Lewis". EURweb. June 10, 2020.
- ^ Stanton, Angela (April 22, 2018). Life of A Real Housewife: The Angela Stanton Story. Stanton Publishing House. ISBN 9781732295209 – via Google Books.
- ^ Toone, Stephanie. "5 things to know about Phaedra Parks' battle over the 'Lies of a Real Housewife' book". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- ^ "Angela Stanton is a new cast member on BET's From the Bottom Up". Rolling Out. February 26, 2018.
- ^ "Woman pardoned by Trump challenges Rep. John Lewis for Congressional seat". TheGrio. March 9, 2020.
- ^ "Angela Stanton-King, Ga. woman pardoned by Trump, to challenge Rep. John Lewis". The Washington Times. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- ^ "Georgia Primary Election Results: Fifth Congressional District". The New York Times. June 24, 2020.
- ^ Seelye, Katharine Q. (July 17, 2020). "John Lewis, Towering Figure of Civil Rights Era, Dies at 80". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
- ^ Bluestein, Greg (July 20, 2020). "Democrats tap Nikema Williams to replace John Lewis on November ballot". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
- ^ Laughland, Oliver; Silverstone, Tom (October 15, 2020). "Trump ally running for Congress believes in baseless QAnon sex-trafficking conspiracy". The Guardian. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "Meet the Black Republican Woman Trying to Unseat Civil Rights Icon John Lewis". The Washington Informer. June 10, 2020.
- ^ "These Political Candidates Are Embracing Their Criminal Records". The Marshall Project. June 23, 2020.
- ^ Gilbert, David (February 2, 2021). "QAnon Is Jealous of Myanmar's Military Coup". Vice News. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
- ^ Thalen, Mikael (February 1, 2021). "QAnon believers are feeling left out Myanmar had a coup and the U.S. didn't". Daily Dot. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
- ^ Craggs Mersinoglu, Yasmin (February 2, 2021). "QAnon followers appear to be furious that the US isn't having a military coup like Myanmar". Indy 100. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
- ^ Aviles, Gwen (March 10, 2020). "GOP candidate pardoned by Trump compares 'LGBTQ movement' to 'pedophilia'". NBC News.
- ^ "CPAC speaker proudly tweets about rejecting her transgender child". Metro Weekly. March 1, 2021.
- ^ Browning, Bil (February 23, 2021). "CPAC panelist pardoned by Trump brags about rejecting her trans child". LGBTQ Nation.
- ^ Gillis, Riley (April 14, 2021). "Failed GOP candidate and QAnon supporter goes on lengthy tirade against trans daughter". Metro Weekly. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
- ^ Gregorian, Dareh (June 21, 2020). "A QAnon caucus? Fringe conspiracy theory advocates aim for Congress". NBC News.
- ^ Midkiff, Sarah. "The First Lawmaker Who Openly Supports QAnon Just Won A Primary Election In Georgia". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
- ^ Brewster, Jack. "'The Storm Is Here': GOP House Candidate Tweets QAnon Rallying Cry After Trump Retweets Her". Forbes. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
- ^ Palmer, Ewan (October 16, 2020). "GOP congressional candidate walks out of interview when asked about QAnon support". Newsweek. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
- ^ "Trump ally running for Congress believes in baseless QAnon sex-trafficking conspiracy | Republicans | The Guardian". amp.theguardian.com. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
- ^ Em Steck, Nathan McDermott and Christopher Hickey (October 30, 2020). "The congressional candidates who have engaged with the QAnon conspiracy theory". CNN. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
Stanton-King, a criminal justice advocate and former convict who was fully pardoned by the President in February 2020, engaged with QAnon hashtags and coded language online, tweeting "the storm is here" and posted a "Q" video. Stanton-King told The Guardian she believed in tenets of the movement while denying she herself was a QAnon follower. "I don't know anything about QAnon. You know more than I know,"
- ^ Sommer, Will (February 28, 2021). "CPAC Speaker Angela Stanton King Promotes QAnon From Stage". Yahoo! News. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
Let's address it," King said. "So we know in this election, there were some things going on in regards to the conspiracy theories with Q, right? And I think, me as a person, before I ever got into the conservative movement, I've always been an advocate even if it's for abused children or it's for those people that are incarcerated. So I think that any allegations coming forward in regards to any type of abuse when it comes to children deserves to be investigated, it deserves to be made aware of.
- ^ Gibson, Brittany (January 18, 2024). "RFK Jr. sees an opening as more Black voters sour on Biden". Politico. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
- ^ Gibson, Brittany (April 12, 2024). "RFK Jr. Black outreach director called prominent Trump ally a 'closet Gay'". Politico. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ Pellish, Aaron (May 22, 2024). "RFK Jr. adviser on abortion and Black voter outreach steps away from campaign".