North Carolina Oath Keepers

In early February 2021, the North Carolina chapter of Oath Keepers (OK) split from the national OK organization. Doug Smith, the leader of the chapter, announced that the North Carolina Oath Keepers had voted unanimously to break away; he cited OK’s involvement in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6 as the catalyst for the decision. Though North Carolina Oath Keepers had attended President Trump’s rally on January 6, Smith said that the chapter did not participate in the Capitol riot. Calling the insurrection “an ugly stain on our nation’s history,” Smith said that his group would return to its roots of supporting local law enforcement. According to Smith, North Carolina Oath Keepers had begun distancing itself from national leadership as early as November 2020 due to dissatisfaction with OK’s response to the results of the 2020 presidential election. As of March 2021, Smith had not announced a new name for his organization. The founding date of the NC Oath Keepers is unknown; 2018 is an estimate.