Abby Broyles was on her way up Democratic political ladder in Oklahoma, such as it exists.
The former KFOR-TV reporter and lawyer was the nominee to run against GOP Sen. James Inhofe in 2020. Given Oklahoma’s Republican leanings, this was a pre-ordained victory for the incumbent, but it got her name out there. Next was a 2022 election in what could plausibly be called a swing district, at least given where it is; Oklahoma’s 5th Congressional District, which includes most of Oklahoma City, only went for Rep. Stephanie Bice by a four-point margin in 2020. According to Ballotpedia, Broyles is currently the only declared Democrat for the June 28 primary. Things were really clicking.
And then she allegedly got so drunk she vomited in a hamper at a Valentine’s Day slumber party for teen girls at which she verbally attacked them, including referring to one of them as a “Hispanic f*****.”
But don’t worry, Oklahomans. After first denying she was even at the party, the candidate now says it wasn’t because she had too much wine, it’s because she had wine and then took an unfamiliar sleeping pill given to her by a friend! See, you can still vote for her in good conscience!
In a cover story so farcical one would be excused for thinking crack-smoking Toronto Mayor Rob Ford had somehow been reincarnated in the body of a millennial Oklahoman, Broyles told KFOR in a sit-down interview that she took an unnamed drug to try to sleep at a sleepover for tween girls hosted by her friend and ended up blacking out — providing her with a convenient excuse for not remembering whether she specifically shamed 12- and 13-year-old girls for their looks and ethnicities. How felicitous!
Despite this, Broyles isn’t withdrawing — not yet, anyway. It’s proof liberals have little shame and won’t hold each other accountable, no matter how bad things get. We’ve covered this trend here at The Western Journal, and we’ll continue to do so. You can help us bring readers the truth by subscribing.
The story was initially reported by NonDoc, a nonprofit Oklahoma journalism outlet, which skews toward the progressive end of the pool, for whatever it’s worth.
NonDoc’s Matt Patterson and Tres Savage reported the party was held Feb. 11-12 at the house of a parent who had, according to federal records, donated $2,550 to Broyles’ doomed 2020 senatorial race.
They cited multiple accounts of Broyles becoming intoxicated and berating the eight girls in attendance. Among the insults logged in addition to the incendiary “Hispanic f*****” were “acne f*****” and “judgy f*****.”
Sarah Matthews told KFOR her daughter got called the last of those insults “for not wanting to sleep with a blanket that she cleaned up wine with” — something which sounds decidedly un-judgy, but maybe you had to be there.
“You don’t speak to any human that way, let alone a little girl who’s 12 to 13,” Matthews said. “That can really change how a little girl views herself for the rest of her life.”
Her daughter told NonDoc Broyles’ belligerence came on suddenly.
“It really just happened,” the 12-year-old said. “It was like it was a switch, and she started being rude to people. Early in the evening, she had been nice.”
“We were all sitting around, and she was just going around in a circle saying rude things and would end with ‘F*****’ and saying ‘F-you’ to all of us there — really rude things.”
In addition to “judgy f*****,” Matthews’ daughter said Broyles “was telling me I wasn’t going to be as successful as her.”
Another mother told KFOR her daughter was reduced to crying by Broyles’ heckling and that “Broyles came to apologize to her daughter that night, but that Broyles was too drunk to talk and instead vomited.”
In a text message to Matthews viewed by NonDoc, the homeowner wrote that, “Unfortunately it really was as bad as it sounds. She went from zonked out to attacking kids.”
In addition to “attacking kids,” Broyles also vomited in a laundry basket and on a girl’s shoes, according to NonDoc.
Despite photos of her drinking wine at the sleepover and participating in a TikTok video at the house with the girls, Broyles initially denied she had ever visited the home, called it a Twitter troll attack and threatened to sue NonDoc.
“I don’t want to talk about — I mean, this is ridiculous that this is becoming a thing,” Broyles told the outlet. “This didn’t happen.”
“I’m running for office. You don’t think this is a political attack? You don’t think this is something they cooked up?” she said at another point during the interview. She was then asked if the teen girls had “cooked up” a political attack on a 2022 midterms candidate. She responded that it was “their moms.”
“I mean, I don’t know,” Broyles said. “I have no idea. This is — I’m just telling you it’s not true, and if I were a journalist, I would not be doing a story because it’s not a story.”
NonDoc published its piece on Thursday. On Friday, a considerably more contrite — if not entirely truthful — Broyles sat down with KFOR’s Kevin Ogle to confirm that it was, in fact, a story.
The homeowner, Broyles told KFOR, “asked me to come over. She asked me to bring some wine. We had wine and sushi and then a couple of hours later, we were upstairs in their theater room watching a movie.
“For years, I have struggled with stress and anxiety and insomnia. I took the bar exam on two hours of sleep. I mean, this is how far this goes back for me,” she continued.
“And she knows that. And she gave me a medication I had never taken before. And I had an adverse reaction. Instead of helping me sleep, I hallucinated. And I don’t remember anything until I woke up or came to, and I was throwing up in a hamper.”
Ogle, significantly more charitable than the moment deserved, asked, “I’m not saying you’re not being truthful, but, you know, there are people out there watching right now saying, ‘Come on. She blacked out and doesn’t remember.’ What do you say to those people?”
“First of all, I want to apologize to the families again, and for people who say I just blacked out and I’m making this up, you don’t know me,” she responded. “I never ever would say something hurtful like those things. And that’s why I know I was not in my right mind. I know that that’s what happened because of that combination of things. And I deeply, deeply regret it.”
Here’s the full KFOR segment; the interview with Broyles begins at 3:00:
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There are two reasons not to believe Broyles. The first is the obvious: Every functioning adult who doesn’t have a substance abuse problem — and particularly a successful 32-year-old lawyer who ran for Senate and is making a credible run for the House — knows the time to try an unfamiliar sleeping medication given to you by a friend, if it exists at all, definitely isn’t after you’ve consumed alcohol.
In short, we’re expected to believe Broyles is either a) stupid or b) believes we are. Neither possibility should earn her your vote, should you live in Oklahoma.
Second, we shouldn’t believe Broyles because — and here’s a stunner — this wouldn’t be the only lie she told in the interview.
When asked about her initial denials: “I was misquoted in the Nondoc article. I never told them — this was on a phone call — and I never told them that I wasn’t there. I said it didn’t happen because he was asking about these allegations. And I had no idea because, again, I don’t remember this episode at all.”
You can probably guess where this goes: KFOR contacted NonDoc, whose editor in chief played them “a taped conversation where Broyles denies being at the party on the night in question.”
So, third try: “That phone call was terrifying and caught me off guard,” Broyles told KFOR in a statement. “I remember hearing the accusations and just repeating ‘no, no, no’ and then hanging up. I was happy to be in the TikTok video with the girls, which was obvious proof of my attendance.”
So basically, a partial denial of a denial of a denial. Impressive stuff, that.
As for her campaign, though, it’s not dead yet: “I’ll be OK no matter what happens, but as far as this campaign, I’m never going to stop fighting for Oklahomans, whether it’s in this race or fighting for the cause some other way,” she told KFOR after their reporter said “it seems like this may have damaged the campaign beyond repair.”
She may have vomited in a laundry basket in front of a group of 12 and 13 year olds she verbally assailed. She may have lied about it, then lied about lying about it. Her absurd excuse may be that she wasn’t under the influence of alcohol but instead under the influence of alcohol and another drug she had never taken before. But she’s not summarily withdrawing, apparently. Nosiree. She’s still in it to win it.
Come on, Oklahoma. Don’t be “judgy.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
