Royce White, a former NBA player challenging Sen. Amy Klobuchar in the November Senate race after winning the GOP primary in Minnesota White, 33, got the Republican nomination after defeating Navy veteran Joe Fraser with about 39% of the vote to Fraser’s roughly 29%. The controversy comes as White is looking to make his background a strength in politics.
Royce White NBA career
Nevertheless, Royce White had several difficulties during his NBA career. He publicly battled mental health concerns and had a terrible dread of flying, which made going to away games challenging for him. Due to these issues, he was never able to play for the Rockets and was eventually traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in July of 2013. He was released by the 76ers in October of that year.
In March 2014, White made a brief comeback to the NBA when he signed two 10-day contracts with the Sacramento Kings. He only participated in three games and only attempted one shot and committed two fouls. His brief NBA career came to an end after this. After that, White played basketball abroad for a few seasons before joining the Big 3 league.
Royce White has moved from athletics to politics, participating actively in his native Minnesota. In the 2022 GOP primary, he entered but was not selected for a U.S. House seat. He faced off against Joe Fraser in the 2024 GOP Senate primary and emerged victorious. In the November election, White will run against Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat.
White, who is 33 years old, has emerged as a well-known mental health awareness campaigner. He bases his campaign and public speaking engagements on his own experiences during his NBA career.
The Royce White controversy
White has been an advocate for mental health awareness, but during the past several years, he has also been involved in a good deal of controversy related to his political efforts.
He has come under fire for remarks deemed “misogynistic, homophobic, antisemitic, and profane.” Many also doubt his loyalty to conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and former Royce White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon.
Regarding Jones, White remarked, “He has a lot of courage to say things that many people won’t say.”
Additionally, White is said to have misused “donor’s money to benefit himself.” White has renounced any wrongdoing, including the purported expenditures at the strip club.
White, a ward of the Rockets in 2012 and an intriguing first-round draft pick because he could play just about any forward position with power on court. But his career was blighted by problems after months of troubles in dealing with anxiety disorder and fear of flying. He said those issues limited his choice for playing, which kept him from gaining that next level with the Rockets.
Royce White then spent a short time with the Sacramento Kings and played in the CBL for two seasons; playing first for Calgary Surge during 1996–97 season, but was released by February of that year before finishing his career out after he signed up to play with Edmonton Stingers for their second ever month old season.
While Royce White struggled through professional basketball, he has remained a powerful and steadfast advocate of mental health awareness. His public life and political platform have been heavily shrouded by his experiences with anxiety. He has taken that message to his global profile, advocating for increased help and empathy toward others coping with mental health challenges. On the website of his presidential campaign, he has highlighted his pledge to those causes counting himself as a reformer in mental health.
Royce White announced a House campaign in Minnesota’s 5th congressional district against Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar in 2022 over White’s political hopes. He mounted what was in its way a very impressive campaign, but ended up losing the primary. Instead, White kept on keeping-on in his political dreams and hopes for the U.S. Senate.
There have been issues with White’s candidacy. He came under fire in June for his 2022 campaign expenditures, which included a $1,000 purchase at the Miami strip club Gold Rush Cabaret. White was forced to publicly address the matter as a result of the expenditures, raising concerns about the purpose of the expenditure. At first, he expressed disapproval of the Daily Beast’s findings and hinted that his staff could have been responsible for the costs instead of him. Furthermore, White said that the expense—which was included in his Federal Election Commission (FEC) report—might have been for venue food instead of entertainment for himself.
Former basketball player and airplane victim Royce White just won the GOP nomination to run against Amy Klobuchar in the U.S. Senate.
“Well look, let's just be frank, women have become too mouthy. As the black man in the room, I'll say that".
pic.twitter.com/UuX3ifmqd2
— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) August 14, 2024In spite of this scandal, White’s primary win has made way for a high-profile Senate contest against veteran Democrat Amy Klobuchar, who is well-known for her work on a range of national problems. As he gets ready for the November election, White’s campaign is probably going to center on his life story, his support of mental health, and his outlook for the future of Minnesota.
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