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The Tennessee Mayoral Candidate and Her White Supremacist Friends

Franklin mayoral candidate Gabrielle Hanson Proud Boys White supremacist group Support

Image: Footage via News Channel 5 Nashville

As Franklin voters cast their ballots on Tuesday, the mayoral race marked by white supremacist ties and a contentious candidate, Gabrielle Hanson, reaches its decisive moment.

Christopher Wiggins

Christopher Wiggins is a senior national reporter for The Advocate. He has a rich career in storytelling and highlighting underrepresented voices. Growing up in a bilingual household in Germany, his German mother and U.S. Army father exposed him to diverse cultures early on, influencing his appreciation for varied perspectives and communication. His work in Washington, D.C., primarily covers the nexus of public policy, politics, law, and LGBTQ+ issues. Wiggins' reporting focuses on revealing lesser-known stories within the LGBTQ+ community. Key moments in his career include traveling with Vice President Kamala Harris and interviewing her in the West Wing about LGBTQ+ support. In addition to his national and political reporting, Wiggins represents The Advocate in the White House Press Pool and is a member of several professional journalistic organizations, including the White House Correspondents’ Association, Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists, and Society of Professional Journalists. His involvement in these groups highlights his commitment to ethical journalism and excellence in the field. Follow him on X/Twitter @CWNewser (https://twitter.com/CWNewser) and Threads @CWNewserDC (https://www.threads.net/@cwnewserdc).

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In Tennessee, a community awaits a decision on who will lead it. As Franklin heads to the polls on Tuesday, a mayoral campaign marred by white supremacist associations and controversial incidents reaches its climax.

The Nashville CBS affiliate WTVF previously shed light on the evolving drama surrounding mayoral candidate Gabrielle Hanson, whose campaign has been entangled in a web of far-right extremist connections.

Earlier in October, a disquieting scenario unfolded at a candidate forum where self-identified neo-Nazis rallied behind Hanson. Jeff Tischauser, a senior Southern Poverty Law Center researcher, detailed to WTVF the disturbing affiliations of the Tennessee Active Club, the white supremacist group in question, describing it as openly anti-Semitic, racist, and otherwise bigoted.

At the heart of the storm stood Hanson, who found herself escorted to the forum by key figures from the extremist group, including Sean Kauffmann and Brad Lewis. This forum incident spurred seven of the eight Franklin Board of Mayor and Aldermen members to issue a joint statement condemning the intimidating demeanor exhibited by the neo-Nazis during the forum, underscoring Franklin’s commitment to inclusivity and democratic engagement.

On the eve of the election, white supremacists’ presence again became evident, as posters from the far-right group Patriot Front were discovered in parts of downtown Franklin. The signs, denouncing various perceived enemies, were a grim reminder of the extremist ideologies intertwined with this mayoral race.