Oklahoma Democrat ends congressional campaign after drunk sleepover incident, citing mental health

The Oklahoma Democrat who came under scrutiny for her alleged verbal assault of several pre-teen girls at a friend's house earlier this year has ended her congressional campaign.

Abby Broyles, who was running to represent Oklahoma's 5th District, arrived at a friend's house on Friday, February 11, and proceeded to become drunk and delirious – aided, she says, by a sleeping pill given to her by a friend. She then insulted the young girls who were sleeping over at their friends' house, calling one of them a "Hispanic f***er," and another an "acne f***er." She proceeded to vomit in one girl's shoe.

A press release from Broyles dated Thursday announced the end of her campaign, citing a number of factors including "gerrymandering," "recent events," and "salacious right-wing clickbait."

Initially, Broyles denied the allegations to NonDoc.com (the outlet that initially reported the story), before saying she regretted mixing alcohol and the sleeping pill. "Last month, I made a mistake I deeply regret. As I admitted, I mixed alcohol and a medication I’d never taken before while under the same roof as a group of young women who looked up to me, and for that, I apologize from the bottom of my heart."

In the new note, Broyles said that on March 2, she made an attempt to end her life, following the press and public scrutiny of the sleepover incident. 

"I should have asked for help sooner before I wound up Twitter roadkill, especially before jumping into the cutthroat political arena ... Unfortunately, I had to hit rock bottom to realize it." she wrote. 

"And ask any woman in leadership, we’re judged more harshly for our mistakes than men (I’d bet you a man wouldn’t have been tabloid fodder over this). After the sleepover incident, I lost support from democrats. The DCCC [Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee] announced it was distancing itself from me. The news cycle was the longest 9 days of my life. I didn’t even feel safe staying in my own home due to the threats I received," she continued. "Today, I am ending my campaign for Oklahoma’s 5th Congressional District to focus on myself and my happiness."

Broyles says she will return to the political arena once she works through her mental health challenges. "I will be back to fight and protect our democracy, working alongside all of you – women, girls and working families alike. I’m making this promise to you: I will be back stronger than ever," she wrote.