Antigovernment General

Top Takeaways

The Southern Poverty Law Center identified general antigovernment groups in addition to specific militia, sovereign citizens, constitutional sheriffs and conspiracy propagandist groups that also make up the extreme antigovernment movement. In 2021, the conspiratorial and dubious view of government was pervasive, as evidenced by the movement’s popular rhetoric on such issues as COVID-19 regulations, local school curriculum, the “Big Lie” of voter fraud, and border security. These views largely continued in 2023, but with a marked and troubling rise in antigovernment activity against inclusive public schools and the continued incorporation of white Christian nationalist ideas.

Several major events have significantly affected antigovernment groups in recent years. The Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and the attempt to stop the democratic transfer of power through the formalized counting of electoral votes was the most public moment for the movement since the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. In 2023, more people were charged, and trials took place for those alleged to be criminally responsible for the events on Jan. 6. More than 1,200 people have been charged with offenses ranging from trespassing to seditious conspiracy for their actions on Jan. 6, and over 80 of them were either members of identified antigovernment organizations or said to be motivated by the movement’s conspiracies. All evidence points to the Oath Keepers militia playing a crucial role in coordinating the violence on that day.

Listed as an antigovernment militia organization, the Oath Keepers garnered a wave of national media attention for their key involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection. Both the U.S. House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack hearings and the Oath Keepers trials kept the spotlight on the group. The group received a nearly fatal blow in May 2023 when its founder and leader, Stewart Rhodes, was sentenced to 18 years in prison for seditious conspiracy for his role in the insurrection. To date, somewhere around 20 Oath Keepers have been convicted for their activities related to the insurrection.

While Rhodes’ Oath Keepers continues to be dismantled, that doesn’t mean we’ve seen the last of its supporters. An entity out of Utah is operating as Oath Keepers USA, which claims to be an organization separate from Rhodes’ militia. Its founders are remaining board members and state leaders from Rhodes’ Oath Keepers. This “new” group says it will uphold “the original spirit of the now defunct ‘Oath Keepers’ organization.”

Faced with greater scrutiny and deplatforming in the wake of the insurrection, antigovernment groups reorganized and dispersed into communities to focus on localized activities – a mainstay tactic of the antigovernment movement. There is concern in the militia movement that individuals are less likely to join out of fear of legal repercussions in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack. Many militias have deactivated or abandoned their websites and public social media accounts. Those that retain an online presence often try to distance themselves from the image of militias as violent, insurrectionist groups, instead positioning themselves as community disaster response organizations. As former Oath Keeper Jason Van Tatenhove has noted, this public relations game is the same one played by Rhodes with his militia. Van Tatenhove told the SPLC’s Hatewatch that Rhodes’ legacy was developing “a blueprint for others to create these kinds of autonomous militia groups based around his community preparedness and team programs.” Framing Oath Keepers trainings this way was done to try to help Oath Keepers “avoid the ‘M-word’ or the militia, which [was] a forbidden word,” Van Tatenhove said. “[Rhodes] was very aware of optics.” Despite how they were advertised, Van Tatenhove says 99% of the trainings were “down-and-dirty warfighting taught by actual warfighters that had done it.” Following Jan. 6, many militias seem to be trying to use this same model.

During 2023, constitutional sheriffs continued to show their abject disrespect for the rule of law. Dozens of sheriffs across the country took a stand against gun laws, publicly refusing to enforce current rules or future laws that would change the status quo around gun ownership. Antigovernment movement activists worked in 2023 to further popularize both county supremacy and attempts to nullify federal laws. The Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association (CSPOA), the flagship constitutional sheriffs organization in the country, continues to try and recruit law officers into the group and its related ideology. CSPOA does this through events targeting law enforcement, an online television show and membership in their association.

In 2023, the sovereign citizens movement continued to prosper and gain supporters from new demographic groups through disinformation channels regarding health and the proliferation of conspiracy theories.

White Christian nationalism continues to influence mainstream political and social movements. However, even more than Christian nationalism, dominionism has been spreading and taking root in conservative movements. Dominionism is the theocratic idea that Christians are called by God to exercise dominion over every aspect of society by taking control of political and cultural institutions. As noted expert Frederick Clarkson states, “It envisions a very different society than one defined by democratic aspirations and equality for all people.” The most significant example of this influence during 2023 was the battle in the GOP to name a new speaker of the House. U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson, who was elected after multiple other candidates lacked enough support within the party, is a dominionist associated with the New Apostolic Reformation. Numerous revivals and other events meant to prop up support for dominionism and to recruit new followers happened in 2023 around the country. The SPLC’s monitoring also noted an uptick in right-wing extremists calling political opponents “demons,” “Satanists” and similar epithets, another indication of how dominionist ideas have become more common.

Antigovernment groups engaged in campaigns attacking inclusive public education during 2023. These groups evoked “critical race theory” and called liberals and progressives Marxists and communists, continuing to spread conspiracies about the government’s role in education.

Most anti-student inclusion groups, which maintain antigovernment ideals and use extremist tactics to combat student diversity and inclusive education, formed in response to COVID-19 mask and vaccine mandates in public schools. However, they quickly evolved their focus to attacks on historically marginalized students. Their tactics include challenging reading materials, mostly pertaining to people of color and the LGBTQ+ community; challenging school policies that allow LGBTQ+ students to be accepted and safe at school; and pushing to eliminate inclusive curriculum that includes the accurate teaching of hard parts of American history.

Key Moments

Ammon Bundy’s so-called People’s Rights network launched at the beginning of the pandemic and was a major driver of antigovernment activity, especially in the Pacific Northwest. In 2023, Bundy and his group faced legal challenges. In July, an Idaho jury slapped Bundy and People’s Rights with an order to pay St. Luke’s Health System $52.5 million in damages for swarming its Boise hospital, forcing it to briefly shut down, and harassing medical personnel. Bundy refused to participate in the trial and made multiple efforts to get his supporters to rally to his property in north Idaho, with little success. As a follow up to the St. Luke’s judgment, a judge issued a warrant for Bundy’s arrest in November 2023 because he missed a contempt of court hearing. Bundy disappeared following the hearing.

Sovereign citizens continued to have volatile interactions with law enforcement. In March 2023, 25-year-old sovereign citizen Chase Allan was killed by police after he refused to comply with directions during a traffic stop in Farmington, Utah. He tried to grab his loaded gun and managed to get it out of the holster before he was shot. Allan and his parents were members of the sovereign citizen movement and called themselves American State Nationals. Antigovernment activists held rallies in his honor, some of which were attended by members of the People’s Rights Utah chapter.

Among the revivals and events meant to prop up support for dominionism and to recruit new followers this year was Sean Feucht’s tour that visited every state capital and the U.S. Capitol. Feucht is a major dominionist. He said his tour was meant to “to take back our Capitols for Jesus and expel the demonic heaviness that reigns over those buildings!” Feucht advocates for a country controlled by dominionist and New Apostolic Reformation Christians. U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colorado, helped get him access to hold an event in the U.S. Capitol rotunda.

In 2022, courts ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones to pay just shy of $1.5 billion to families of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims for spreading conspiracy theories that resulted in the harassment of those families. Jones filed for bankruptcy in an attempt to protect his resources from being seized to satisfy the judgment. During a November 2023 court hearing, the Sandy Hook families offered to settle the debt for a fraction of the amount – $85 million over 10 years. In his most recent bankruptcy filing, Jones listed about $13 million in total assets. If Jones doesn’t accept the families’ offer, the judge will determine how much he will pay the families and other creditors.

Perhaps the biggest conspiracy from 2022 that continued in 2023 was that of “The Big Lie.” A cottage industry of election conspiracy theorists continued to travel around the country and make their cases claiming that the 2020 presidential election was stolen; local elections lack security, making it easy to manipulate vote counts; and the 2024 presidential election will likely be stolen again to keep Trump out of power.

MyPillow’s Mike Lindell continues to be a source of these conspiracies. His latest contribution is “The Plan: The Anti-Steal Dossier,” which he published in August 2023. The stated goal of his plan is to expose election fraud by demonstrating that election equipment can be manipulated when connected to the internet. Lindell believes nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are involved in election fraud, claiming they get privileged access to election data. To expose this supposed voting fraud, Lindell’s plan includes creating a grassroots movement based around, and using, technology created by him to report on election fraud in real time, send reports to law enforcement, and eventually get new legislation passed to make elections secure.

Michael Flynn’s “ReAwaken America” road show continued in 2023. At every tour stop, attendees get a range of conspiracies, from antisemitism and election integrity to Christian nationalism and QAnon. Flynn’s One More Mission group, moreover, is specifically recruiting veterans to volunteer as poll watchers, saying the sovereignty of our elections requires “men and women of integrity to step up, again, and perform our civic duty.” His group uses militarized language and imagery to recruit veterans to join “the fight” as election volunteers.

What’s Ahead

Antigovernment groups will seek to capitalize on the 2024 election season by trying to mainstream their conspiracies and use them to land new recruits. Militias will continue to use a local/regional structure and frame themselves as helpers of the community, while at the same time engaging in combat training. Sovereign citizens will continue offering seminars and classes to train both followers and entice new recruits, all the while trying to remain relevant to the younger crowd they’ve found over the last few years. Constitutional sheriffs will try to capitalize on interest in both county supremacy and dubious efforts to nullify federal law. Anti-student inclusion groups and white Christian nationalists will continue trying to build political power and be front-and-center in efforts to dismantle our democratic institutions and democracy itself.

The fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the Jan. 6 arrests and convictions will continue to affect the trajectory of the antigovernment movement for years to come. Some militia-style groups will grow “security” arms in the name of protecting conservative protests and events, while also claiming their military-style training is done only to prepare for emergencies. Antigovernment groups will adopt these strategies and develop others to maintain a veneer of credibility and legitimacy.

If the 2020 elections showed anything, it was that the antigovernment movement may inspire political violence leading up to and during the 2024 elections. Those that engage in attacks on elections and voting infrastructure are some of the biggest threats to human rights and a pluralistic democracy in the United States. School board candidates endorsed by Moms for Liberty did not fare as well as expected in November 2023 elections. This could be an indication of increased awareness about the intentions and actions of anti-student inclusion groups, and the empowerment of parents and local grassroots activists to combat their efforts. Despite taking a beating in recent elections, anti-student inclusion groups are likely to continue attacks on inclusive education at the local level, while national groups try to build political power.

Background

Antigovernment groups are part of the antidemocratic hard-right movement. They believe the federal government is tyrannical, and they traffic in conspiracy theories about an illegitimate government of leftist elites seeking a “New World Order.” Adherents and critics have in the past referred to this movement as the “Patriot” movement.

A particularly prominent conspiracy in the antigovernment movement – and one conspiracy propagandist groups often push – posits an effort to create a New World Order through a One World Government, often facilitated by the United Nations to institute communism/socialism and take away private property rights. Another conspiracy alleges there are plans to merge the United States, Canada and Mexico into a single country. Other notable conspiracies include the idea that the federal government is secretly planning to round up citizens and place them in concentration camps run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Fears of impending gun control or weapons confiscations, either by the government or international agencies, also run rampant in antigovernment circles.

These conspiracy theories identify grievances, both real and imagined, and demonize groups deemed responsible for them. Conspiracy propagandists offer simple answers to complex problems but often stop short of offering a specific solution to the perceived threats, instead hinting at actions to be taken by movement members while being careful to maintain plausible deniability. Such groups and outlets as the John Birch Society, WorldNetDaily (WND) and Infowars are crucial to the antigovernment extremist movement in that they help craft and nurture the very conspiracy theories that animate the movement’s activists.

The antigovernment movement has experienced waves of popularity, including during the 1990s. In 1996, the year after the Oklahoma City bombing, 858 groups were documented active in the U.S. Timothy McVeigh, one of the Oklahoma City bombers, was motivated by extreme antigovernment beliefs then circulating in the militia movement. He was also inspired by the racist novel The Turner Diaries, modeling his attack on a scene from the book. The antigovernment movement of the 1990s, typified by the proliferation of militias, was fueled by a string of incidents where antigovernment figures clashed with law enforcement, including the 1992 Ruby Ridge standoff, the 1993 Branch Davidian Waco compound siege and the 1996 Montana Freemen standoff. Other factors included the struggling economy in the early 1990s, particularly in Western states, and the election of President Bill Clinton, who was characterized by antigovernment activists as a liberal intent on seizing their weapons.

Similarly, in the late 2000s and 2010s, the antigovernment movement was animated by the Tea Party movement, with both national and local groups mobilizing resentment around the economic challenges of the Great Recession and in opposition to the presidency of Barack Obama.

Historically, the militia movement engages in paramilitary training aimed at protecting citizens from the pervasive fear of an impending government crackdown. Militia groups often engage in firearm and field training, maintain internal hierarchical command structures, obsess over guns and the Second Amendment and oppose immigration. Notable groups have included the Wolverine Watchmen, Ohio Defense Force, Hutaree Militia, Oath Keepers, Minutemen American Defense, Militia of Montana and various Three Percenters-affiliated groups. The Wolverine Watchmen were charged, and later convicted, in connection to the 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Oath Keepers and Three Percenters group members have been arrested for charges relating to the Jan. 6 insurrection. Three Percenters groups adhere to the dubious historical claim that only 3% of American colonists fought against the British during the War of Independence.

The Oath Keepers were founded in 2009 by Elmer Stewart Rhodes, a veteran Army paratrooper, law school graduate and former Ron Paul congressional staffer. Like some antigovernment groups and activists such as Jack McLamb’s Police Against the New World Order, Oath Keepers primarily sought to recruit current and former law enforcement, military and first-responder personnel, though they also accepted civilians. Unlike many other militia groups that are local, geographically based groups, Oath Keepers had a centralized hierarchical leadership and tiered structure at national, state and local levels. It was a leading antigovernment group that helped plan and stage the Jan. 6 insurrection. Many of its members, including founder and leader Stewart Rhodes, were charged and convicted of crimes pertaining to the insurrection. In May 2023, Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years in prison after being convicted of seditious conspiracy charges. A small but influential and foundational segment of the antigovernment movement is the constitutional sheriff movement. These groups adhere to the concept of county supremacy and the idea that the county sheriff has the ultimate law enforcement authority in the United States. This idea was pioneered in the 1970s and described as “Posse Comitatus.” The Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association (CSPOA) is the largest and oldest national constitutional sheriffs organization.

The second tenet of county supremacy centers on the idea that county government should have control of all the land within its borders, taking this power away from the state and federal government. Antigovernment groups who focus on this tenet are often active in the antipublic lands movement popular in the Western U.S., also known in previous decades as the Sagebrush Rebellion or Wise Use movement.

Sovereign citizens, a subset of the antigovernment movement, believe that they, not judges, juries, law enforcement or elected officials, decide which laws they must obey and which to ignore. They also think they shouldn’t have to pay taxes.

Sovereign citizen ideology is highly conspiratorial, and its adherents are best known for clogging up the courts with indecipherable filings and bogus liens targeting public officials. Sovereign citizens are frequently engaged in criminal activity and have been violent, particularly when confronted by government officials such as police officers. Some concerning groups are part of a subset of sovereign citizens termed Moorish sovereign citizens.

The antigovernment movement has also included groups whose focus was on tax protest and survivalism. While groups associated with both segments still exist, their prevalence has diminished in recent years. Though the antigovernment movement has changed in the last 50 years, with different segments either growing or shrinking, the key conspiracies and ideas are always taken up by other antigovernment groups and often reemerge later.

Three Percenters

In recent years, Three Percenterism was one of the three leading core components within the antigovernment militia movement, along with the Oath Keepers and traditional militia groups. The reference to 3% stems from the dubious historical claim that only 3% of American colonists fought against the British during the War of Independence. Numerous Jan. 6 insurrectionists had connections to Three Percenters and were charged and convicted for the roles they played. While Three Percenter groups still exist, their prominence and influence took a hit after Jan. 6.

Anti-Student Inclusion

The main goal of these groups is to gain power, mostly at the local level, and bring their extremist agenda into the classroom, often focusing on approaches that deny LGBTQ+ and Black students representation and quality education. The driving narrative of anti-student inclusion groups is that public schools and educators are attempting to indoctrinate and sexualize students through a radical Marxist agenda. They push this theory by driving the ban of reading and instructional materials, seeking to eliminate policies that protect LGBTQ+ students, and pushing for a curriculum that restricts teaching the hard parts of American history.

Key Moments In Movement History

• The John Birch Society is founded in 1958. The organization is dedicated to opposing communism but also pushes conspiracy theories that become standard in the antigovernment movement.
• The beginning of the antitax movement in the 1950s and into the 1960s, which opposed a federal income tax, is often seen as an important source for the antigovernment and militia movements that take off in the 1980s and 1990s.
• Christian Reconstruction and Christian Identity, two movements that have influenced militias in the United States, begin to take form in the 1950s. Although never large in terms of direct adherents, Christian Reconstruction introduced the idea of dominionism – the rule of society and politics by certain and specific types of Christians and Christian institutions – which some white Christian nationalists have adopted, as well as others in patriot and antigovernment groups. Their influence on the extremist right and militia groups begins in earnest in the late 1970s into the 1980s.
• The Posse Comitatus begins in the Western United States in the 1960s. Adherents argue that there is no legitimate government above the county level. There are many strong connections between Posse Comitatus and Christian Identity, including common anti-Black and antisemitic beliefs.
• At a joint session of Congress in 1991, President George H.W. Bush describes the first Gulf War as an effort to protect a “new world order” of international collaboration birthed after the Cold War’s end. This feeds conspiracy theories popular with militias and antigovernment activists that globalist political elites conspire to create a worldwide government at the expense of U.S. sovereignty.
• Louis Beam publishes an essay in 1992 on “leaderless resistance,” a concept that becomes influential in antigovernment organizations.
• The 11-day Ruby Ridge standoff with the Weaver family and law enforcement occurs in Boundary County, Idaho. In August 1992, U.S. marshals moved to arrest Randy Weaver under a warrant. Weaver refused, and a standoff ensued. Weaver’s son, his wife and a deputy U.S. marshal were killed. This serves as a rallying cry to the growing antigovernment and militia movements.
• At the “Gathering of Christian Men,” also know as the “Rocky Mountain Rendezvous.” in Estes Park, Colorado, in 1992, 160 neo-Nazis, Klan members, antisemitic Christian Identity adherents and others arguably lay the groundwork for the militia movement that would explode in 1994.
• The 1993 federal siege of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, ends with nearly 80 dead and the compound burned to the ground. The Ruby Ridge standoff and the lethal siege in Waco become seminal events in the lore of the extreme right, in particular the antigovernment movement, which has also been called the “Patriot” movement in the past.
• Passage of gun control laws – such as the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, more commonly known as the “Brady Bill,” in 1993 – is viewed by the antigovernment right as a sign of a growing tyrannical federal government bent on making individual Americans defenseless.
• On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols bomb the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The bombing killed at least 168 people and injured at least 680 additional individuals. McVeigh and Nichols were motivated by the Waco and Ruby Ridge standoffs, and McVeigh apparently visited the Waco compound both during and after the siege. This attack continues to motivate antigovernment groups decades after the event.
• Montana Freemen, a Christian sovereign citizen group, engage in a standoff with federal authorities that ends with the Freemen’s surrender.
• Conspiracy website WorldNetDaily (WND) is founded in 1997 by Joseph Farah.
• On June 27, 1997, the U.S. Supreme Court in Printz v. U.S. sides with Sheriff Richard Mack, the future founder of the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, and Ravalli County Sheriff/Coroner Jay Printz in their case against a provision of the “Brady Bill.”

• Infowars is founded in 1999, and with antigovernment conspiracy theorist and supplement salesman Alex Jones, it goes on to craft and nurture the conspiracy theories that animate the antigovernment movement.
• Barack Obama is elected in 2008 as the first Black president of the United States. After a spike of militia activity in the 1990s, the antigovernment movement seemed to wither, only to rebound in the number of groups created during the Obama administration.
• Shawna Forde, leader of the militant group Minutemen American Defense, coordinates a home invasion on May 30, 2009, that results in the murders of Arivaca, Arizona, resident Raul Flores and his 9-year-old daughter Brisenia. Forde and one other group member were sentenced to death; a third member of the group gets life in prison/hatewatch/2009/06/15/nativist-leader-arrested-double-murder.
• Oath Keepers forms in 2009. The organization, made up of present and former law enforcement officials and military veterans, becomes one of the largest far-right antigovernment groups in the United States and will be integral to the violence on Jan. 6.
• Richard Mack, a former sheriff and Oath Keepers board member, establishes the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association in 2011.
• Cliven Bundy’s Battle at Bunkerville, Nevada, takes place on July 10, 2014. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department engaged in a four-day standoff against Cliven Bundy and his antigovernment followers over unpaid cattle grazing fees. The standoff ended when the BLM withdrew to avoid a violent clash with antigovernment supporters. The Bundys, as well as others in antigovernment circles, see this as a significant and inspirational win against federal authority.
• The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge Occupation begins in January 2016. Antigovernment adherents, including Ammon Bundy and militia members, descend onto the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge for what escalates to a 41-day standoff, with law enforcement demanding that the federal government hand over public lands to states. The standoff ends with four arrests.
• Donald Trump is elected president in 2016 without winning the popular vote. Until the Trump administration, antigovernment activity and membership would increase during Democratic administrations and wane during Republican administrations. In a change to these trends, antigovernment activity holds strong into the Trump administration from the highs from Obama’s presidency. At this point, many antigovernment groups shift from opposing the federal government to opposing Trump’s perceived enemies. Many antigovernment groups support Trump’s election campaign and his administration.
• The height of the COVID pandemic hits in 2020 and 2021. Conspiracy propagandists, including the John Birch Society, find a niche audience with COVID-19 vaccine skeptics, using existing antigovernment mistrust and a historical relationship with the natural-health sector to push population and government control conspiracies. Likewise, constitutional sheriff organizations promoted COVID-19 conspiracy theories and refused to enforce health guidelines enacted by lawmakers.
• The Virginia Citizens Defense League Rally in Richmond, Virginia, is held in January 2020. The event brings together extreme antigovernment militia groups alongside other Second Amendment absolutists. Joining nearly 400 localities in 20 states, 120 localities in Virginia declared themselves “Second Amendment sanctuaries.”
• During a rally on April 30, 2020, in Michigan’s Capitol building, attendees – some armed – storm the statehouse. Brothers William and Michael Null, members of the Wolverine Watchmen militia, attend the event, which is hosted in part by American Patriot Council’s Ryan Kelley.
• In May 2020, a police officer kills George Floyd in Minneapolis, sparking rallies for racial equality and criminal justice reform around the country. In many locations, armed militia groups respond by showing up at the events in full tactical gear, claiming they are protecting the community. A police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, shoots Jacob Blake in August 2020. Black Lives Matter protests occur throughout the state. Militias come out to counter them. Kyle Rittenhouse is accused of shooting three people, killing two. He receives an outpouring of support from the far right and is eventually acquitted of all charges, making him a celebrity of the extremist right.
• Violent domestic extremists, including antigovernment militias such as the Oath Keepers, storm the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, in an attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 general election results. Members of the group face multiple federal charges. At least five people die in connection with the attack. Among those arrested are members of the Proud Boys, the Three Percenters movement and the Oath Keepers. Attacks by antigovernment militia groups also take place at state capitol buildings in Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
• Red Pill festivals in Montana and South Dakota take place in June and July 2021. Conspiracy theorists and lawmakers gather for regional events, which include such organizations such the John Birch Society, Redoubt News, Connecting the Dots, and Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association. Speakers include Alex Newman, Caleb Collier, Bill Jasper, Matt Shea, Idaho Rep. Heather Scott, Joey Gibson, John Jacob Schmidt, G. Edward Griffin, Dan Happel and Richard Mack.
• Throughout summer 2021, Ammon Bundy’s People’s Rights threatens a standoff in Klamath Falls, Oregon, over water rights with the Klamath Tribes (Klamath-Modoc-Yahooskin).
• Arise USA claims it made an 85-stop tour promoting the “Big Lie,” QAnon, COVID-19 conspiracies, 9/11 antisemitic conspiracies and county supremacy from May to September 2021. Robert David Steele, who will die from COVID-19 that fall, organized the rally. Speakers included Richard Mack and Kevin Jenkins. Steele was a former CIA agent, 2016 Libertarian candidate for president and Holocaust denier.
• The ReAwaken America Health and Freedom Tour begins in 2021 as QAnon conspiracy theorists gather with other antigovernment activists in Michigan, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado and California. Speakers include Clay Clark, Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, Gene Hoe, Richard Mack of the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, Joe Oltmann of FEC United and Artur Pawlowski, Canadian Black Robe Regiment pastor. This eventually grows into the ReAwaken America tour that occurs throughout 2022 in the run-up to the midterm elections that year. The ReAwaken America events continued to tour the country into 2023.
• The first American trucker convoy departs Adelanto, California, in February 2022 on its way to Washington, D.C. This “People’s Convoy” was an effort by truckers and others to publicly highlight their right-wing beliefs, including opposition to COVID vaccines and public health measures during the pandemic, with a cross-country parade fashioned after the disruptive trucker protest in Canada in early 2022. Convoy organizers and supporters included far-right figures such as Michael Flynn, Patrick Byrne and the Washington III Percent. In September, some of the group reorganized to protest imprisonment of Jan. 6 insurrectionists by flooding the veterans suicide hotline with nonemergency calls.
• Members of the Wolverine Watchmen, along with members of the Michigan Militia, are arrested by the FBI and Michigan State Police on Oct. 8, 2022 after plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. A Jackson County, Michigan, jury in late 2022 found three members of the Wolverine Watchmen guilty on all charges for their plot to kidnap and kill Whitmer.

2023 General Antigovernment Groups

Download SPLC’s 2023 list of antigovernment groups with EIN (tax ID) numbers.

2nd Amendment Patches.com
Halltown, Missouri

ActionUp America
Jacksonville, Florida

American Patriot Party
Ashland, Oregon

American Patriot Vanguard
California
Illinois
Indiana
Minnesota
Rio Rancho, New Mexico
Ohio
Tennessee
Texas

American Policy Center
Warrenton, Virginia

Audit the Vote PA
Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania

AVOW (Another Voice of Warning)
Rigby, Idaho

Awake Illinois
Naperville, Illinois

Berks County Patriots
Blandon, Pennsylvania

California Three Percenters
Sanger, California

Camp Constitution
Charlotte, North Carolina

Center for Self Governance
Republic, Washington

Child Protection League/Child Protection League Action
Maple Grove, Minnesota

Citizens Defending Freedom
Brevard County, Florida
Duval County, Florida
Hillsborough County, Florida
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Nassau County, Florida
Osceola County, Florida
Polk County, Florida
Chatham County, Georgia
Fulton County, Georgia
Okefenokee District, Georgia
Collin County, Texas
Dallas County, Texas
Denton County, Texas
Harris County, Texas
Montgomery County, Texas
Nueces County, Texas
Tarrant County, Texas
Travis County, Texas
Williamson County, Texas

Citizens for Responsible Education
Newburyport, Massachusetts

Citizens Organized to Restore Rights
Fall River, Massachusetts

Concerned Parents of Texas
Austin, Texas

Constitution Club
Hemet, California

Constitution Party
Woodstock, Georgia
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Springfield, Illinois
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Piedmont, Missouri
Pulaski County, Missouri
Auburn, New Hampshire
New Lebanon, Ohio
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania*
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Bountiful, Utah
Weston, West Virginia

Constitutional Coalition of New York State
Cheektowaga, New York

Constitutional Education & Consulting
Wellborn, Florida

Constitutional Rights PAC
McLean, Virginia

Courage Is a Habit
Indiana

Cowboys Motorcycle Club
Idaho

Defense Distributed
Austin, Texas

Eagle Forum
Birmingham, Alabama
Santa Rosa, California
Brighton, Colorado
Alton, Illinois
Birmingham, Michigan
Missouri
Nebraska
Elko, Nevada
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Nashville, Tennessee
Dallas, Texas
Montgomery County, Texas
Spring, Texas
South Jordan, Utah
Lynden, Washington

Educate Yourself
Costa Mesa, California

Education First Alliance
Apex, North Carolina

Education Veritas
Alpharetta, Georgia

Faith Education Commerce (FEC United)
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Grosse Pointe, Michigan
Macomb, Michigan

For Kids and Country
Lebanon, Pennsylvania

Free PA
Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
Dauphin County, Pennsylvania
Lancaster County and South End Chapters, Pennsylvania
Lebanon County, Pennsylvania
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Perry County, Pennsylvania
Schuylkill, County
York County, Pennsylvania

Freedom Coalition
Butte County, California
Glenn County, California
Live Oak, California
Placer County, California
Sacramento, California

Freedom First Society
Colorado Springs, Colorado

Freedom Law School
Spring Hill, Florida

Freedom’s Rising Sun
Logan, Utah

Garden State 2A Grassroots Organization
Mullica Hill, New Jersey

Gorilla Learning Institute
Citrus Heights, California

Granite Grok
Gilford, New Hampshire

Gun Owners of America
Florida
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Springfield, Virginia

Illinois Sons of Liberty
Illinois

Institute on the Constitution (aka American View)
Lewes, Delaware
Caroline County, Maryland
Nebraska
New Hampshire
Ohio
Cookeville, Tennessee
Pasadena, Maryland

LewRockwell.com
Auburn, Alabama

Liberty First Society
Wellborn, Florida

Liberty News Radio
American Fork, Utah

Lions of Liberty
Chino Valley, Arizona

Long Island Loud Majority
Lindenhurst, New York

Long Island Mutual Assistance Group
Nassau County, New York

Loving Liberty Network
Ogden, Utah

Madison's Militia
New Lebanon, New York

Mamalitia
San Joaquin, California

Maulitia Motorcycle Club
Dauphin, Pennsylvania

Mom Army
Phoenix, Arizona
Coachella Valley, California
Los Angeles, California
Orange County, California
Sacramento, California
San Diego, California
Ventura County, California
Washington, D.C.
Indianapolis, Indiana
Las Vegas, Nevada
Long Island, New York
Charlotte, North Carolina
Knoxville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Austin, Texas
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas
Houston, Texas
Salt Lake City, Utah
Seattle, Washington

Moms for America
Arkansas
Brevard County, Florida
Winter Haven, Florida
Palm Beach County, Florida
Polk County, Florida
Sarasota County, Florida
Illinois
Northern Illinois
North Carolina
Englewood, Ohio*
Virginia

Moms for Liberty
Baldwin, County Alabama
Madison County, Alabama
Shelby County, Alabama
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska
Maricopa County, Arizona
Pima County, Arizona
Benton County, Arkansas
Craighead County, Arkansas
Lee County, Arkansas
Lonoke County, Arkansas
Pulaski County, Arkansas
Washington County, Arkansas
Alameda County, California
Contra Costa County, California
Lake County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Placer County, California
Riverside County, California
San Bernardino County, California
San Diego County, California
San Luis Obispo County, California
San Mateo, California
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Clara County, California
Shasta County, California
Tuolumne County, California
Yolo County, California
Boulder County, Colorado
Garfield County, Colorado
Mesa, Colorado
Weld, Colorado
Fairfield County, Connecticut
Hartford County, Connecticut
Litchfield County, Connecticut
New Castle County, Delaware
Alachua County, Florida
Bay County, Florida
Brevard County, Florida
Broward County, Florida
Citrus County, Florida
Clay County, Florida
Collier County, Florida
Duval County, Florida
Flagler County, Florida
Hernando County, Florida
Highlands County, Florida
Hillsborough County, Florida
Indian River County, Florida
Leon County, Florida
Martin County, Florida
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Monroe County, Florida
Orange County, Florida
Osceola County, Florida
Okaloosa County, Florida
Palm Beach County, Florida
Pasco County, Florida
Pinellas County, Florida
Polk County, Florida
Putnam County, Florida
Santa Rosa County, Florida
Sarasota County, Florida*
Seminole County, Florida
St. Johns County, Florida
St. Lucie County, Florida
Volusia County, Florida
Walton County, Florida
Chattooga County, Georgia
Fulton County, Georgia
Gwinnett County, Georgia
Hall County, Georgia
Laurens County, Georgia
Oconee County, Georgia
Honolulu County, Hawaii
Nez Perce County, Idaho
Cook County, Illinois
DuPage County, Illinois
Henry County, Illinois
Tazewell County, Illinois
Allen County, Indiana
Cass County, Indiana
Hamilton County, Indiana
Howard County, Indiana
La Porte County, Indiana
Noble County, Indiana
Tipton County, Indiana
Warrick County, Indiana
Carroll County, Iowa
Dallas County, Iowa
Linn County, Iowa
Polk County, Iowa
Warren County, Iowa
Ford County, Iowa
Johnson County, Kansas
Boone County, Kentucky
Campbell County, Kentucky
Jefferson County, Kentucky
Warren County, Kentucky
East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
Kennebec County, Maine
Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Baltimore County, Maryland
Carroll County, Maryland
Cecil County, Maryland
Frederick County, Maryland
Harford County, Maryland
Howard County, Maryland
Kent County, Maryland
Montgomery County, Maryland
Talbot County, Maryland
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Plymouth County, Massachusetts
Branch County, Michigan
Emmet County, Michigan
Grand Traverse County, Michigan
Isabella County, Michigan
Kent County, Michigan
Livingston County, Michigan
Macomb County, Michigan
Midland County, Michigan
Monroe County, Michigan
Oakland County, Michigan
Wayne County, Michigan
Dakota County, Minnesota
Olmsted County, Minnesota
Otter Tail County, Minnesota
Scott County, Minnesota
St. Louis County, Minnesota
Wright County, Minnesota
Madison County, Mississippi
Green County, Missouri
Jackson County, Missouri
St. Charles County, Missouri
St. Louis County, Missouri
Yellowstone County, Montana
Douglas County, Nebraska
Sheridan County, Nebraska
Clark County, Nevada
Hillsborough County, New Hampshire
Rockingham County, New Hampshire
Bergen County, New Jersey
Burlington County, New Jersey
Cape May County, New Jersey
Morris County, New Jersey
Ocean County, New Jersey
Passaic County, New Jersey
Bernalillo County, New Mexico
San Juan County, New Mexico
Dutchess County, New York
Erie County, New York
Monroe County, New York
Nassau County, New York
Niagara, New York
Oneida County, New York
Onondaga County, New York
Orange County, New York
Putnam County, New York
Queens County, New York
Suffolk County, New York
Wayne County, New York
Westchester County, New York
Alexander County, North Carolina
Bladen County, North Carolina
Buncombe County, North Carolina
Cabarrus County, North Carolina
Chatham County, North Carolina
Forsyth County, North Carolina
Gaston County, North Carolina
Guilford County, North Carolina
Iredell County, North Carolina
Johnston County, North Carolina
Mecklenburg, North Carolina
New Hanover County, North Carolina
Onslow County, North Carolina
Orange County, North Carolina
Pender County, North Carolina
Stanly County, North Carolina
Wake County, North Carolina
Wilson County, North Carolina
Williams County, North Dakota
Delaware County, Ohio
Franklin County, Ohio
Hamilton County, Ohio
Lake County, Ohio
Madison County, Ohio
Medina County, Ohio
Stark County, Ohio
Summit County, Ohio
Wood County, Ohio
Canadian County, Oklahoma
Garfield County, Oklahoma
Oklahoma County, Oklahoma
Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma
Tulsa County, Oklahoma
Deschutes County, Oregon
Douglas County, Oregon
Adams County, Pennsylvania
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Beaver County, Pennsylvania
Berks County, Pennsylvania
Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Chester County, Pennsylvania
Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
Dauphin County, Pennsylvania
Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Erie County, Pennsylvania
Franklin County, Pennsylvania
Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
McKean County, Pennsylvania
Monroe County, Pennsylvania
Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Northampton County, Pennsylvania
Northumberland County, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
Pike County, Pennsylvania
Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania
Union County, Pennsylvania
Washington County, Pennsylvania
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania
York County, Pennsylvania
Washington County, Rhode Island
Anderson County, South Carolina
Beaufort County, South Carolina
Berkeley County, South Carolina
Charleston County, South Carolina
Colleton County, South Carolina
Dorchester County, South Carolina
Florence County, South Carolina
Georgetown County, South Carolina
Greenville, South Carolina
Horry County, South Carolina
Kershaw County, South Carolina
Lancaster County, South Carolina
Lexington County, South Carolina
Oconee County, South Carolina
Pickens County, South Carolina
Richland County, South Carolina
Spartanburg County, South Carolina
York County, South Carolina
Hughes County, South Dakota
Meade County, South Dakota
Pennington County, South Dakota
Davidson County, Tennessee
Hamilton County, Tennessee
Shelby County, Tennessee
Sumner County, Tennessee
Williamson County, Tennessee
Wilson County, Tennessee
Bexar County, Texas
Collin County, Texas
Denton County, Texas
El Paso County, Texas
Fort Bend County, Texas
Gillespie County, Texas
Lubbock County, Texas
Nueces County, Texas
San Patricio County, Texas
Travis County, Texas
Williamson County, Texas
Bedford County, Virginia
Fauquier County, Virginia
Loudoun County, Virginia
Montgomery County, Virginia
Prince William County, Virginia
Roanoke County, Virginia
Spotsylvania County, Virginia
Stafford County, Virginia
Warren County, Virginia
Benton County, Washington
Douglas-Chelan County, Washington
Lewis County, Washington
King County, Washington
Kitsap County, Washington
Pierce County, Washington
Snohomish County, Washington
Spokane County, Washington
Whitman County, Washington
Yakima County, Washington
Kanawha County, West Virginia
Kenosha County, Wisconsin
Marathon County, Wisconsin
Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
Ozaukee County, Wisconsin
Polk County, Wisconsin
Racine County, Wisconsin
St. Croix County, Wisconsin
Washington County, Wisconsin
Winnebago County, Wisconsin
Wood County, Wisconsin
Vilas County, Wisconsin
Hot Springs County, Wyoming
Laramie County, Wyoming
Natrona County, Wyoming
Sweetwater County, Wyoming

National Constitutional Coalition of Patriotic Americans
Connecticut
Maine
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
Bridgeport, West Virginia

New California State
San Luis Obispo, California

New Jersey Project
Medford, New Jersey

News With Views
Spring Branch, Texas

Next News Network
Northbrook, Illinois

No Left Turn in Education
Sacramento, California
Hartford, Connecticut
Tallahassee, Florida
Atlanta, Georgia
Cobb County, Georgia
Fulton County, Georgia
Louisville, Kentucky
Augusta, Maine
Annapolis, Maryland
St. Paul, Minnesota
Jefferson City, Missouri
Concord, New Hampshire
Raleigh, North Carolina
Portland, Oregon
Gladwyne, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Providence, Rhode Island
Richmond, Virginia
Madison, Wisconsin

Oath Keepers
Allen County, Indiana
DeKalb County, Indiana

Oath Keepers USA
Orem, Utah

Ohio Patriots Alliance
Newark, Ohio

Overpasses for America
California
Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma
Texas

Panhandle Patriots Riding Club
Idaho

Parents Against Critical Race Theory LLC Ashburn
Virginia

Parents Defending Education
Midlothian, Virginia*
Alabama
Alaska
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Kansas
Kentucky
Maine
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Nebraska
Nevada
New Jersey
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Wyoming

Parents’ Rights in Education
Alaska
Arizona
California
Idaho
Illinois
Maine
Montana
New York
Ohio
Oregon
Rhode Island
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
Wisconsin

Patriot America
Middletown, Ohio

Patriot Party of AZ
Glendale, Arizona

Patriot Shit Outfitters
Bethel, Ohio

People’s Rights
Southern California
Emmett, Idaho*
Montana
Central Oregon
Oregon
Utah
Washington

Purple for Parents Indiana
Nappanee, Indiana

Reawaken America
Collinsville, Oklahoma

Renew America
Provo, Utah

Riders United for a Sovereign America Corp.
Tempe, Arizona

Sarasota Patriots
Sarasota, Florida

Secure Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas

Sons of Liberty Media (You Can Run But You Cannot Hide)
Annandale, Minnesota

Sons of Liberty Survival Outfitters
Sparta, New Jersey

Southern Ohio Outdoorsmen
Peebles, Ohio

State of Jefferson Formation
Mariposa, California
Shasta County, California
Stanislaus County, California
Josephine County, Oregon

Stay in the Light Stay in the Fight
Sarasota, Florida

Super Happy Fun America
Woburn, Massachusetts

Tactical Civics
San Diego County, California
Florida
South Georgia
Bartow County, Georgia
Chattooga County, Georgia
Cherokee County, Georgia
Cobb County, Georgia
Fannin County, Georgia
Floyd County, Georgia
Haralson County, Georgia
Pickens County, Georgia
Polk County, Georgia
Union County, Georgia
Idaho
Kentucky
Androscoggin County, Maine
Barry County, Michigan
Montcalm County, Michigan
Isabella County, Michigan
Cascade County, Montana
Gallatin County, Montana
Park County, Montana
Silver Bow County, Montana
Nassau County, New York
North Carolina
Clearfield County, Pennsylvania
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Carbon County, Pennsylvania
Wilson County, Tennessee
Boerne, Texas*
Denton County, Texas
Freestone County, Texas
Harris County, Texas
Montgomery County, Texas
Parker County, Texas
San Patricio County, Texas
Appomattox County, Virginia

Tea Party of Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky

Tenth Amendment Center
Irvine, California

Texas Freedom Coalition
Flint, Texas

The Patriot Depot
Powder Springs, Georgia

Timber Unity
Oregon

True Texas Project
Tarrant County, Texas

Truth in Education
Alpharetta, Georgia

Union of Three Percenter American Patriots
Phoenix, Arizona

Utah Citizens Alarm
Utah

Utah Constitutional Militia
Salt Lake City, Utah

Utah Patriots
Salt Lake City, Utah

We Are Change
Los Angeles, California
Walsenburg, Colorado
Waterbury, Connecticut
Orlando, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Chicago, Illinois
Rockford, Illinois
Minnesota
New York, New York
Texas
Corpus Christi, Texas

Wild Bill for America
South Daytona, Florida