Democrat's fundraiser at kinky club known for 'F***** Me Friday' sparks outrage as neck-and-neck race takes lewd turn: See the NSFW menu

By VICTORIA CHURCHILL, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 19:55, 6 August 2026 | Updated: 19:59, 6 August 2026 The Democrat running in one of California's most competitive congressional seats is holding a campaign fundraiser at a San Diego nightclub venue known for holding events with lewd names, such as 'F***** Me Friday.' Marni von Wilpert, the party's nominee in California's 48th District, will greet donors at Gossip Grill next Thursday, a venue that advertises itself as 'San Diego's best queer bar' and serves cocktails including 'Tease-quila Sunrise' and 'Mount My Melons.' Tickets for the fundraiser start at $50 for students and $100 for everyone else. The bar's calendar also features 'Girls, Gays & Theys Sunday,' regular drag king and drag queen performances and a burlesque night it calls 'Top Shelf Tease.' 'Out of touch Marni von Wilpert found the perfect headquarters for her radical campaign,' National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Christian Martinez told the Daily Mail. 'That dangerous agenda belongs in a nightclub, not Congress,' Martinez added, accusing her of 'putting sexual content in front of young children' during her past work on the city council.  Von Wilpert, herself an LGBTQ+ elected official who came out publicly in 2023 as bisexual, has sat on the San Diego City Council since 2020.  She's championed the installation of pride displays across all 36 branches of the city's public library system. The libraries also advertise a 'Drag Queen Storytime' aimed at children as young as three.  Congressional candidate Marni von Wilpert marches during the 2026 San Diego Pride Parade on July 18, 2026 in San Diego, California Gossip Grill (pictured) advertises itself as 'San Diego's best queer bar' The cocktail menu at the Gossip Grill, von Wilpert's fundraising venue, boasts a slew of sexually themed drinks Von Wilpert's fundraiser is set to take place at the Gossip Grill, known as 'San Diego's best queer bar' Von Wilpert is backed by Equality California, which bills itself as the country's largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights group and has become a formidable lobbying force in Sacramento. Its political arm is co-hosting Thursday's fundraiser. She faces Republican Jim Desmond, a San Diego County supervisor, in November's neck-and-neck race. A poll published in the last week of July put the two candidates in a statistical tie. Both campaigns have been contacted for comment.  California's 48th District seat opened up when GOP congressman Darrell Issa announced his retirement, turning a reliably Republican district into a battleground. The seat is rated D+2 by the Cook Political Report, meaning it has leaned slightly more Democratic than the country as a whole in recent presidential elections. Cook moved the race from 'Toss-Up' to 'Lean Democrat' in March, a week after the primary filing deadline. It was also one of five redrawn by the passage of the Proposition 50 ballot measure last November, which was backed by California Governor Gavin Newsom. The move was aimed at giving Democrats an extra five congressional seats in the Golden State in midterms and in 2028.   Supervisor Jim Desmond is the GOP nominee facing von Wilpert Newsom came up with Proposition 50, the 'Election Rigging Response Act,' after the Texas GOP approved a plan to redistrict the Lone Star State to give Republicans a leg up in retaining the House of Representatives in 2026. Proposition 50 took the power of redrawing California's map away from the bipartisan California Citizens Redistricting Commission until 2030 and returned it to the state legislature, which is controlled by the Democrats.  If Republicans lose California's 48th, it will further jeopardize any chance the party has to hold the House.  The current makeup of the chamber is 218 Republicans to 212 Democrats, with four vacancies.  The lone Independent in the House is Kevin Kiley, a former Republican also of California, whose seat was also redrawn after the passage of Prop 50.