Hundreds show up for self-described 'empty chair' town hall for Sen. Thom Tillis

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Hundreds of people packed Raleigh Brewing Company on Friday night, with more sitting outside listening over speakers, for a self-described "empty chair" town hall for Sen. Thom Tillis.

"Listen to your constituents and do what is right for the working people of North Carolina," said Anna Ruderman, a co-founder of Bull City Indivisible, one of the groups that organized the event.

Organizers said they extended several invitations to Tillis regarding the event, asking him to attend.

Attendees voiced frustration with funding and job cuts at the federal level, which has affected departments including the IRS to U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs to the Department of Education, criticizing Tillis for supporting the efforts of President Donald Trump's administration and the work of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the government agent working to cut government waste, fraud, and abuse.

"We have a billionaire that is running our country, that's telling our President what to do," said Libby Johnson, a member of the Raging Grannies, an advocacy group that performed Friday night.

The DOGE website reports its saved $115 billion in taxpayer funds thus far, though only a portion of receipts have been posted - making the total figure unverifiable at this point. Last month, Tillis said Musk reminded him of a "strategist."

"He is throwing out big ideas. And if anybody thinks that all of these big ideas are going to be implemented to conclusion, they don't understand the process of disruption," Tillis said. "Everybody is acting like Congress doesn't exist anymore. Many of the things he's thinking about will require Congressional approval to actually structurally change them."

Tillis said there is oversight, and he'd be willing to speak up if he felt Musk "went too far."

"We live on Social Security and Medicare, and those are benefits that we earned by working all our lives. And now that's in danger. My husband is a veteran, and he's worried that we may not receive a disability check this month. This is real life," added Vicki Ryder, a fellow Raging Granny.

Wiley Nickel, a Democrat who formerly served in Congress and the North Carolina Senate, was the first speaker.

"Tonight was just about a democracy that's bending, not breaking, and what I got to see here was hundreds and hundreds of people speaking out, asking for real leadership in Washington," said Nickel, who is weighing a potential Senate run against Tillis in 2026.

Earlier in the day, Tillis appeared at a fundraiser at the Carolina Country Club in Raleigh, where protesters gathered outside.

"We need (Sen. Tillis) to know that a lot of bills that are going through that he's voting for us, the people, a lot of us are against. And we want him to know that we are unhappy with that. He works for us. We're his constituents. He works for us. We have the right to talk to him, and he should answer our questions," said Rebekah Burks, one of the protesters.

In a statement, Abby Roesch, Campaign Manager for Tillis for Senate, wrote:

"It's no surprise that extreme left-wing groups are organizing protests outside of the Senator's events, and it is always good to see citizens exercising their constitutional rights. Senator Tillis is focused on building a secure, conservative future for our country. Under his leadership at the state level, conservative policies have made North Carolina's economy one of the strongest in the nation, and it is his goal to do the same for our great country. After spending 10 weeks in DC confirming President Trump's nominees, securing our border, and cutting government waste, fraud, and abuse, Sen. Tillis is reinvigorated by his fellow North Carolinians to continue fighting to reverse the dangerous Biden Era agenda."

Daniel Keylin, a Senior Advisor to Sen. Tillis, cited ongoing safety and security considerations in an e-mail exchange with ABC11.

"In response to the threats, we take the security of the Senator and his staff very seriously. We have seen a dramatic increase in the amount of death threats made against Sen. Tillis and his staff since President Trump was inaugurated," Keylin wrote to ABC11.

Last week, Keylin sent out an e-mail to media members, which included links to voicemails the office has received. Separately, he noted specific incidents dating to 2022, including multiple instances in which individuals were ultimately arrested and charged.

As for invitations regarding these "town hall" events (a similar event in Greensboro earlier this week also drew hundreds of people), Keylin described Indivisible as "a far-left national group" in his e-mail.

"No objective person would expect any Republican official to attend a so-called "town hall" that is organized by local Democratic parties and other partisan left-wing groups. Just as no one would expect Gov/ (Josh) Stein or other Democrat officials to attend events organized by Republican and conservative groups," wrote Keylin in response to an inquiry from ABC11.

"We're a peaceful group. We condemn violence. We just want to make sure North Carolina families have access to their civil rights," said Ruderman.