After conservative activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot in September 2025, a rumor spread on social media that his widow, Erika Kirk, was expecting their third child.

The couple, who married in Arizona in 2021, had a 3-year-old daughter and 1-year-old son together.

A Facebook post (archived) shared on Sept. 27, 2025, read, in part:

“This child is a gift — a piece of Charlie I still carry,” Erika Kirk revealed just 30 minutes ago, stunning the world with an announcement both heartbreaking and hopeful. Still mourning the loss of her husband, she shared that she is expecting their third child — a revelation that brings new light into her grief and carries Charlie Kirk’s legacy forward into the future.

The rumor about Kirk’s pregnancy announcement circulated elsewhere on Facebook and on YouTube. The Facebook posts included links in comments to advertisement-filled stories about her alleged pregnancy.

Is Erika Kirk pregnant with her 3rd child? Here’s the truth

(Update Express on Facebook)

Multiple Snopes readers also searched our website to verify whether the claim was true.

However, there was no evidence at the time of this writing that Kirk was pregnant with her and Charlie Kirk’s third child. She had not confirmed a pregnancy on social media or in public remarks following her husband’s death.

Instead, the unfounded rumor stemmed from Facebook posts that were seemingly created to generate advertising revenue for the aforementioned external websites.

Snopes reached out to Turning Point USA, the youth organization that Charlie Kirk co-founded, for comment and will update this story if we receive a response.

What Erika Kirk has said in public remarks

Snopes reviewed Erika Kirk’s full speech from her husband’s memorial on Sept. 21, 2025, in Arizona and found no mention of a pregnancy, contrary to social media posts’ claims.

Kirk also addressed the public in a video (archived) shared on Instagram several days after her husband’s death. In the video, she stood behind a lectern bearing a photo of her husband and a message that read: “May Charlie be received into the merciful arms of Jesus, our loving Savior.”

She did not mention being pregnant with the couple’s third child in the video, either. However, she did reference their family and two young children multiple times during her remarks.

“But most of all, Charlie loved his children. And he loved me with all of his heart. And I knew that. Every day, I knew that,” she said before calling him a “perfect” father and husband.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DOhk5yXiYJ_/

In a separate Instagram post, she memorialized her spouse and included a photo of the couple with their two children. That post did not include a pregnancy announcement. It read:

Unfounded pregnancy rumor stems from Facebook posts

The unfounded rumor about Kirk’s pregnancy stemmed from Facebook posts that were seemingly created to generate advertising revenue for linked external websites.

One of those websites displayed a “USA News” logo, which has previously appeared on other websites that published false stories about MSNBC hosts Rachel Maddow and Chris Hayes.

An analysis of several of the images included in the posts and text in the attached articles indicated they were likely created with the help of artificial-intelligence software.

We pasted portions of two of the articles’ text into GPTZero, an AI detection tool, which indicated it was “highly confident” that the content was AI-generated. However, it’s important to note that AI-detection software is imperfect and readers should interpret the tools’ results with caution.

Is Erika Kirk pregnant? No evidence rumor’s true

(GPTZero AI-detection tool)

Is Erika Kirk pregnant? No evidence rumor’s true

(GPTZero AI-detection tool)

We independently identified signs of potential AI generation or assistance in the text of the posts and articles, too. For example, the text contained emotionally charged language, such as “the words swept through the hall like a shockwave” and “transformed the narrative from one of tragedy into a profound story of grief, resilience, and the paradox of new life emerging from unbearable loss.” This type of language is common in AI-generated content that’s designed to elicit reactions and boost engagement.

Additionally, several images used in the posts were likely AI-generated. Hive, an AI-detection platform, estimated a 99% probability that two separate photos contained AI-generated or deepfake content. Deepfakes are images that have been generated or heavily edited using AI.

Is Erika Kirk pregnant? No evidence rumor’s true

(Hive AI Detector)

Is Erika Kirk pregnant? No evidence rumor’s true

(Hive AI Detector)

A close inspection of the images also showed telltale signs of AI generation, such as unnaturally smooth skin and an absence of shadows in places where they would typically appear.

Instagram countdown leads to further pregnancy speculation

Some social media users speculated that Kirk planned to announce her third pregnancy on Sept. 16, 2025.

The speculation stemmed from a countdown post (archived) Erika shared on Sept. 2 that read, “…walk the countdown with us. 9.16.2025.” In an accompanying video, Erika is heard saying, “What if childhood could hold eternity?”

However, there was no evidence at the time of this writing that the countdown was related to a pregnancy and she had not made any such announcement on Instagram.