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Impeached for involvement in organization affiliated with TPUSA
Iowa State University’s student body president recently survived an impeachment attempt after some student government peers targeted him for his involvement in conservative politics, namely a program affiliate of Turning Point USA called the Campus Victory Project.
The crux of the controversy centered on student President Colby Grant’s activism for the project, which seeks to raise up and support center-right student government leaders to counterbalance the leftwing stronghold liberal students often enjoy in campus governments.
Grant’s work as a recruiter with Campus Victory Project while concurrently serving as student body president served as the basis for the articles of impeachment against him.
The situation at Iowa this semester is no outlier, several student newspaper articles have spotlighted the Campus Victory Project, arguing it may cross ethical lines.
The Rocky Mountain Collegian student newspaper at Colorado State University on March 10 published a lengthy investigative report into the last four student administrations to flag the victory project’s involvement with student politicians.
The student reporters confirmed several former elected officials attended Campus Victory Project conferences funded by the organization, but the program was not listed on mandatory financial disclosure forms.
“CVP, an initiative by TPUSA, aims to ‘commandeer the top office of student body president at each of the most recognizable and influential American universities,’ according to a CVP-designed brochure obtained by The Collegian,” it reported.
The brochure, which has circulated for years among left-leaning student government circles, may be as much as 10-years-old, however.
At Utah Valley University — where TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated while he spoke on campus last September — its student newspaper in March 2025 and February 2023 flagged the project’s backing of student candidates there.
“[C]oncerns have been raised over organizations with partisan ties being involved in nonpartisan student government,” the UVU Review reported.
A January 2026 letter to the editor to Florida Atlantic University’s student newspaper by a current student senator raised similar concerns, citing successful candidates who won with donations from Campus Victory Project.
“This is why fellow student representatives and I have formed the Sunshine Party to effectively stand against these types of transgressions against the fairness and transparency that the SG statutes and Constitution are meant to protect, and bring the focus back to what matters most, student life,” wrote student Caroline Ribeiro, adding its first campaign launches this spring, running on a platform of “comprehensive campaign finance reform.”
According to its website, Campus Victory project “identifies leadership potential, addresses student educational and career goals, and provides resources and grants to assist students in developing leadership opportunities on campus.”
As reported by the Iowa State Daily, “it was revealed that Brandt signed a non-disclosure agreement with the CVP, has attended at least one all-expenses-paid ‘prospective victory retreat,’ and has attempted to recruit other Iowa State Student Government members to be part of the organization.”
The articles of impeachment lodged against Brandt on Feb. 18 included the allegations that he recruited for Campus Victory Project in violation of his pledged to serve “all students,” that he used his position as president for personal gain, as well as “malfeasance by attempting to place candidates in other student government offices, with a partisan motive.”
But one day later, the student government’s judicial branch determined that the impeachment articles violated Brandt’s First Amendment rights, and were withdrawn.
An official statement from Iowa State University officials concurred, noting the decision is in line with Constitutional free speech rights.
An Iowa State University spokesperson referred The College Fix to its official statement and did not provide further comment. Brandt also did not respond to requests from The Fix.
Campus Victory Project’s Victory Representatives are responsible for “identifying leadership potential, addressing student educational and career goals, and providing resources and grants to assist students in developing leadership opportunities on campus,” according to a job posting.
The posting continued that to excel in this role, representatives must “begin by thoroughly researching students and the campus culture of the universities in their assigned geographic territories.”
“Ultimately, Victory Program Representatives will build strong relationships with students and support their overall growth and development both on and off campus, effectively serving as mentors to various students across the country,” the post stated.
Many observers rushed to defend Brandt for his political activism. Individuals also took to social media to celebrate that the articles of impeachment against Brandt were eventually dropped.
Iowa state Rep. Taylor Collins, a Republican, spoke out in defense of Brandt via X.
“No student should be punished for their political beliefs,” he posted Feb. 19.
Libs of TikTok also defended Brandt, posting “UPDATE: The Articles of Impeachment against Iowa State University Student Body President Colby Brandt have been DISMISSED. It was determined that the articles against him were politically biased and a violation of his First Amendment Rights. AMAZING.”
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