Bo French, a well-known candidate for the Texas Railroad Commission, made a shocking statement at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Friday. He suggested that 100 million people in the U.S. should be deported, which would affect almost one-third of the population. This is a big increase in nationalist talk within the Republican Party.
French, who used to lead the Tarrant County GOP, made these comments during a panel called “Don’t Sharia My Texas.”
He claimed the country needs to remove people he says do not follow American values or are not willing to fit in.
“We have about 100 million people in this country who shouldn’t be here,” French said to a cheering crowd at the Gaylord Texan Resort.
“We’re going to send them all back.”
The number French mentioned is way more than the usual estimate of people in the U.S. without proper documents.
This suggests he wants to remove people who are already legal residents or have become citizens. French later took to social media to say he was the first elected official to ask for such a large-scale removal, and he claimed he moved the “Overton Window” on immigration policies.
His comments mainly focused on religion.
French specifically pointed out Islam, going beyond usual talk about Sharia law to criticize the religion itself.
He called for banning the Islamic call to prayer.
He also said that people who came to the U.S. after 1965 brought in cultures that don’t fit with America. He called the presence of Muslim communities in Texas an “invasion” meant to take over the state and the nation.
French is running for a spot on the Texas Railroad Commission, which is a key group that controls the state’s oil and gas industry.
He is facing off against Jim Wright in a Republican primary runoff on May 26, 2026.
His comments fit with a bigger plan in Texas.
Governor Greg Abbott recently labeled the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as a foreign terrorist group, and CAIR is fighting this in court. Also, Texas Republicans recently formed the “Sharia Free Texas Caucus.”
This isn’t the first time French has faced backlash.
In late 2024, he came under fire from other Republicans for using hateful and offensive language on X (formerly Twitter). Despite these issues, he still has a strong base of followers who support his “America First” stance, seeing him as a tough challenge to the Republican establishment.
Civil rights groups, including CAIR, have criticized French’s recent statements as “anti-Muslim hate” based on fear and false information.
Texas is home to about 300,000 Muslim residents.
Texas Railroad Commissioner candidate Bo French goes off on a racist rant at CPAC:
— Blue Georgia (@BlueGeorgia) March 27, 2026
"It's not just the Muslims… we have roughly 100 million people in this country who shouldn't be here. We're going to send all these people home. We're going to stop the Islamification of Texas… pic.twitter.com/z0JKBuv6xl
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