The conservative who attempted to have more than 100,000 ballots invalidated in Texas has a long history of promoting conspiracy theories.
The campaign, spearheaded by prominent right-wing activist Steve Hotze, petitioned the Texas Supreme Court to not only shorten the number of early voting days but to reduce the number of absentee ballot drop-off locations in Harris County.
Alongside numerous Republican candidates and party members, Hotze filed a lawsuit in an effort to label over 127,000 votes cast in the state’s most Democratic county as unconstitutional.
The all-Republican court denied on Sunday Hotze’s request regarding drive-thru ballots. The lawsuit was also shot down by a federal judge in Texas on Monday.
Hotze’s influence in the state is even more shocking given just how conspiratorial his beliefs are, made apparent by his posts on social media.
Hotze on Monday pinned to the top of his Twitter profile an image with anti-Semitic overtones that suggests the Rockefeller and Rothschild families are trying force microchips onto the global population.
The prominent conservative’s profile is also filled with outlandish and debunked conspiracies surround the coronavirus pandemic.
“COVID-19 Is Being Used to Destroy Democracy,” Hotze tweeted. “It is happening around the world. It’s happening in Texas.”
Hotze is no stranger to controversy. The powerbroker made headlines in July after leaving a message with Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s chief of staff demanding that the National Guard shoot left-wing protesters.
“I want to make sure that he has National Guard down here and they have the order to shoot to kill if any of these son-of-a-bitch people start rioting like they have in Dallas, start tearing down businesses—shoot to kill the son of a bitches,” Hotze said on the voicemail. “That’s the only way you restore order. Kill ‘em. Thank you.”
Despite his conspiratorial views, Hotze, a physician who runs a health and wellness center, has appeared on Fox News repeatedly as a coronavirus expert.
In August, Hotze seemingly denounced in a post on Twitter precautions designed to protect individuals from the coronavirus. The conservative argued that wearing a mask, washing your hands, and social distancing were actually part of an occult ritual.
Hotze’s failed campaign in Harris County is far from his first political/legal battle. The right-wing figure also filed lawsuits earlier this year against Abbott, the Texas governor, over the state’s stay-at-home order in April as well as its contact tracing program.