Texas Republican candidate causes outrage with anti-Islamic campaign ad

• Republican congressional candidate Valentina Gomez has caused outrage by posting a campaign video showing her setting fire to the Quran with a flamethrower.
• Gomez, who is running for Texas’ 31st District in 2026, stated her aim to “end Islam” in the state, despite Muslims comprising only about one percent of Texas’s population.
• The video, shared on X, quickly drew widespread condemnation, with critics describing it as incitement and hate speech.
• Gomez has a history of controversial stunts and using hateful rhetoric against Muslims, the LGBT+ community, Black people, and immigrants.
• Her past actions include staging a mock execution of an immigrant and burning LGBTQ+ books, and she previously failed in a Republican primary race in Missouri.

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MAGA candidate sparks backlash after burning Quran and promising to ‘end Islam’ in Texas