‘A martyr for truth.’ KY lawmakers file bills designating ‘Charlie Kirk Day’
Two Republican state lawmakers filed legislation to memorialize right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk in Kentucky.
Rep. TJ Roberts and Sen. Steve Rawlings, both from Burlington, introduced bills that would designate Oct. 14, which is Kirk’s birthday, of every year as “Charlie Kirk Day” to “honor his legacy as a martyr for truth and liberty,” according to the bill’s language
The bills are Senate Bill 31 and House Bill 87.
Kirk was the host of the Charlie Kirk Show Podcast and founder of Turning Point USA, a nonprofit student organization that advocates for conservative principles on high school and college campuses.
In September 2025, Kirk was fatally shot at an event on Utah Valley State’s campus.
Rawlings and Roberts, said last year they would file legislation to “honor the life and legacy” of Kirk, calling him a “tireless free speech advocate.”
“Charlie Kirk dedicated his life to ensuring that every American could speak freely and think boldly,” Rawlings said in an October news release. “Even after his passing, his influence will continue to be felt through the countless young people he inspired and the enduring strength of the ideas he championed.”
Roberts said “Charlie Kirk Day” also serve as a renewal of the “commitment to uphold respectful dialogue, courage in the face of adversity and the conviction that faith and truth endure.”
Kirk has already been memorialized on the national level.
Last year, President Donald Trump proclaimed Oct. 14 as a national day of remembrance for Kirk.
Trump also posthumously awarded Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
This story was originally published January 6, 2026 at 2:18 PM.
