Joey Gibson (political activist)

Gibson founded the far-right[3][4][5][6] group Patriot Prayer in 2016.[7][8]

On February 25, 2018, Gibson announced that he would be running as a Republican in the 2018 election for the United States Senate seat from Washington, seeking to unseat incumbent Democrat Maria Cantwell.[9] Gibson was defeated in the primary election, receiving only 2.3% of the votes cast.[10][11]

During a March 2018 campaign rally in Spokane Valley, Washington, Gibson expressed opposition to Antifa, a group that frequently protests at his events, and said regarding white nationalists, "I would say the same thing to them that I would say to any black nationalist or Mexican nationalists [sic] group, we have to drop the identity of politics and focus on what is on the inside."[12] He has said freedom of speech is a central element to his platform. Gibson's views have been described as "a complicated muddle" by the Inlander and "basically Alex Jones meets Bernie Sanders" by The Stranger.[13][14]

The Proud Boys, a far-right group,[15] have also been present at several of Gibson's events.[16][17][18]

In February 2019, Willamette Week reported that a Portland police lieutenant kept in close touch with Gibson, passing on to him intelligence about the anti-fascist movement in the city. He also advised Gibson on how a Patriot Prayer member could avoid being arrested.[19] Portland's Independent Police Review investigated and cleared the officer because he was gathering information on the groups and trying to defuse potential clashes with his advice.[20]

In August 2019, Gibson, along with five other men were criminally charged for allegation of involvement in a violent altercation on May 1 in a riot, which took place outside Cider Riot. A woman was beaten unconscious and had her vertebrae broken.[21][22][23] He was indicted for felony riot by the Multnomah County District Attorney on August 15.[24] The owner of the business has also sued Gibson and associates for $1 million for their actions.[25] A Navy veteran referred to as "Ben", who had infiltrated Patriot Prayer and took videos of the violence at their rallies, was expected to testify at Gibson's trial.[26]

Gibson describes himself politically as a "moderate libertarian",[27][28] but his organization has been described in the media as "alt-right".[29][30] Gibson denies that his group is alt-right, and has disavowed white supremacists[31][32][33][34] who frequently appear at his events.[35] The Anti-Defamation League describes his views as appearing to be alt-lite.[36]

Gibson supports a pathway to citizenship for non-criminal illegal immigrants. He supports decriminalization of marijuana, and same-sex marriage.[37] Gibson advocates for establishment of term limits for the U.S. Congress, implementation of a national sales tax, and abolition of the Internal Revenue Service.[13] He opposes what he describes as undue influence of the pharmaceutical industry on healthcare in the United States.[32]

Gibson resides in Vancouver, Washington.[38] He was born in Clark County, Washington, and is of Irish and Japanese descent.[39][40]