The social media account Libs of TikTok (LOTT) has grown into a major player in American politics, and it is even influencing Democratic senators.

Pennsylvania senators John Fetterman and Bob Casey withdrew their request for $1 million in federal funding for an LGBT community centre this week after a LOTT tweet revealed that the venue allows its space to be used for BDSM and kink-themed “play parties”. The post, shared by Republican members of Congress, has so far received 4.7 million views.

The swift backlash was enough to persuade both senators to drop the funding request, with Fetterman saying he expected Republicans to kill the funding if he didn’t reluctantly pull the request himself. “I’m new here, but I wasn’t aware that Democratic values and priorities are dictated by Libs of TikTok,” the politician wrote.

This episode serves as the culmination of LOTT’s slow transition from online personality to major political influencer. The account, run by Chaya Raichik, first rose to national prominence in 2022, with Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan sharing her posts on air. LOTT’s output focused on videos shared by school teachers’ own social media accounts, describing the ways they bring identity politics, particularly on LGBT issues, into their classrooms while teaching young students.