“Now that I’m out of MAGA, I’m a happier person. I no longer have to hate so many people.”
Those words are from Victoria Hurst, who left MAGA in 2022.
Tori grew up in poverty. On her 16th birthday, the only thing she asked for was a grilled cheese sandwich. When she was 16, a well-off family took an interest in her and told her something she desperately wanted to believe that her family was struggling because they were Democrats.
She was 17 when Trump ran. She felt left behind. When he talked about broken systems, she believed him. She got her information from Charlie Kirk and Ben Shapiro. She never fact-checked anything.
In 2020, her mom and grandfather died from Covid. She didn’t know Trump was claiming the election was stolen. She didn’t know what really happened on January 6.
Then, in 2022, a college professor assigned a PBS documentary about January 6. Tori watched it on her iPad during a road trip.
She paused it and asked, “Did this stuff really happen?”
She started researching. She learned the truth. And she walked away.
Today, Tori is finishing her BA and preparing for law school. She’s a Democratic precinct chair.
On the first anniversary of President Trump’s Second Inauguration, she took the Leaving MAGA mission on the road when she spoke at one of the Free America marches that were part of a nationwide protest.
“MAGA doesn’t succeed because their followers are ignorant,” Tori said. “It convinces the educated to abandon reality in favor of loyalty. It does not value respect or unity. It seeks control and demands obedience.”
Her MAGA-supporting boss recently said, “Trump is doing some really weird stuff, huh?” Victoria knows it takes patience, not anger, to help people leave.
Leaving MAGA is there when people are ready to ask, “Did this really happen?”
Will you pitch in so Leaving MAGA can give people in MAGA an off -ramp?
Your gift helps us share stories like Victoria’s and reach people who are questioning.
If you know someone who’s doubting — someone who’s starting to notice Trump is “doing some really weird stuff” — forward them this email.
Let them know thousands of people have walked this path.
Let them know that on the other side, they won’t have to hate anymore.
Chip in here and help us flip more MAGA voters.
Let’s turn our country back around.
Thanks for being with us in this odyssey,
Rich
P.S. Join us TONIGHT and every Tuesday at 7pm ET
Tonight’s topic is Grief, Readiness, and the Right Tool for the Right Stage.
You may have taken action or set boundaries — but different stages of grief and readiness require different tools.
By locating where you actually are, you can stop forcing strategies that don’t align and begin responding in ways that support steadiness, clarity, and your own timing.
Our support groups for those who still have family and friends in MAGA meet Tuesdays at 7pm ET.
