Drag Race star’s reaction to US election slammed by fans: ‘Insane thing to post’
Shangela has been slammed for her post reacting to Kamala Harris’ election loss (Dia Dipasupil/WireImage via Getty)
RuPaul’s Drag Race and All Stars queen Shangela has been slammed by fans after comparing her loss on All Stars 3 to Kamala Harris losing the presidential election to Donald J. Trump.
Drag performer Shangela Laquifa Wadley – or as she’s better known, Shangela – first appeared on RuPaul’s Drag Race‘s second ever season in 2010, before returning for season three a year later. She then reappeared in the Werk Room nearly a decade after that to make the top four of All Stars 3.
As fate would have it, the season’s infamous jury twist saw the eliminated queens vote for the season’s top two, meaning that Shangela missed out on the chance to lip sync for the crown, despite being the statistical front runner.
Posting a picture of the moment the top two were announced as Trixie Mattel and Kennedy Davenport – leaving Shangela as 3rd/ 4th place on the 2018 season – the former We’re Here host likened her loss to Harris’s.
“Today brings back a familiar feeling. But when you know you did the best you could, when you fought the best fight possible, you can walk forward with your head held high,” she wrote.
“It’s OK to feel disappointed. I am. But I hope u don’t feel hopeless. Remember, you don’t always have to win to be able to say “I’m a Winner.” Never stop believing in the power of YOU.
“Thank u VP Kamala Harris for running the best race possible. Y’all take care of yourselves today. If we keep standing for what’s just, while also loving and uplifting each other, we’re gonna be alright.”
But, many fans in the comments of Shangela’s post have not reacted to the post with all the galvanised patriotism that she might have hoped.
“This post is so goddamn self absorbed my god read the room,” one wrote.
Another added, “Girl…this post is a lil…yikes. I don’t think you losing all stars is a good comparison here.”
Other fans called the post “tone deaf” and wrote, “be so for real right now.”
On X, a screenshot of the post was met with similar comments; “An insane thing to post,” one fan wrote, with another comment: “HMMMM how do i make this about me.”
Democratic hopeful Harris lost the election to Trump after the Republican candidate called a victory after he won the decisive state of Wisconsin. His return to the White House heralds a very real wave of new fears for minority groups, including LGBTQ+ Americans.
Shangela, whose out-of-drag name is Darius Jeremy (“DJ”) Pierce, has also faced criticism after she was accused of multiple sexual assaults in March this year, an investigation by Rolling Stone found.
In a legal letter to Rolling Stone, Pierce, via his lawyer Andrew Brettler, described the allegations as “false and unsupported by any evidence or reliable witness testimony.”
Brettler added that Pierce “adamantly denies ever engaging in non-consensual sex.”
Pierce had previously denied accusations of sexual assault after a former staff member of HBO’s We’re Here, Daniel McGarrigle, filed a lawsuit against Pierce in May 2023 – which had since been settled – alleging that the drag star raped him at a crew wrap party for the show.
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