WalkAway campaign

[2][3] The campaign, which also organized events to support Donald Trump, was noted and criticized[4] for its astroturfing methods and the claim that there was a popular movement of people leaving the party.

[5][6][7] In 2021, the group's founder, Brandon Straka, a hairstylist from New York City,[2] was charged with and convicted of participating in the 2021 United States Capitol attack.

[better source needed] In the run-up to the 2020 United States presidential election, the WalkAway campaign held rallies and marches in various cities, an effort to get people to vote for President Donald Trump.

[10] The shutdown came in the wake of the Capitol attack, when Facebook and other social media platforms increased their enforcement of terms of service that ban the incitement of violence.

[23][26] He pleaded guilty to a lesser misdemeanor charge in October 2021, which could be punishable by up to six months in prison, and agreed to provide private social media and other evidence to investigators.

"[31] That same year, Abby Ohlheiser wrote in The Washington Post, "There’s little actual evidence to suggest that #WalkAway represents a mass conversion of millions – or even thousands – of Democrats" and contrasted the broad appeal of true viral videos with the "Conservative Internet viral" nature of the WalkAway video.

[32] ThinkProgress characterized the campaign as "a grifting operation," noting efforts by the organizers to sell dinner packages priced in the hundreds of dollars to march attendees.