Jon StojanWhen swiping right meant, for some, having to hide their true identity, McEntee and his co-founders saw opportunity – and their vision led to over 200 marriages
When John McEntee and his co-founders Isaac Stalzer and Dan Huff launched The Right Stuff in 2022, dating apps like Hinge and Bumble dominated a landscape where politically conservative users reported feeling alienated and even unwanted. Three years later, the app notched a successful run as the go-to matchmaker for America’s growing base of young, modern Conservatives. Some of the stats: Over half a million downloads; more than 200 marriages; at least five babies – that they know of, so far.
The Right Stuff leapt from online dating app to social movement driver, making it possible for America’s growing population of young conservatives to find love in an increasingly digital landscape for budding romance.
The timing wasn’t accidental. McEntee, the former White House Personnel Director turned entrepreneur, launched The Right Stuff during what can only be described as peak woke culture, when admitting you leaned conservative on Hinge or Bumble felt like social suicide.
Mainstream dating apps were plastered with progressive badges and activism prompts, and if you were a young conservative woman trying to find someone who shared your values? Good luck out there.
“Politics has become the number-one deal-breaker in relationships,” McEntee said. “If you were a conservative living in a big city, you were basically invisible on those apps.”
By 2022, mainstream dating platforms had begun signaling progressive causes through in-app activism and social badges – moves that many conservative users felt excluded them from digital matchmaking. McEntee recognized a “market inefficiency,” as economists might put it: millions of young people with conservative values had no digital space where they could connect comfortably.
When Dating Apps Made You Feel Like the Odd One Out
Picture this: It’s 2022. You’re scrolling through profiles, and everyone’s bio reads like a Twitter activism thread. You want someone who values faith, family, and commitment – but saying that out loud feels like you’re about to get canceled. Meanwhile, the apps you’re on are promoting causes that don’t align with your worldview, making you feel like an outsider in your own love life.
That’s the gap John McEntee and his team saw and decided to fill.
“A few years ago, everyone was afraid to market to conservatives,” McEntee said. “But millions of young people with more traditional values had nowhere to connect comfortably.”
And he wasn’t wrong. While the cultural tide was turning – fun fact: Republican identification among men aged 18-29 jumped from 20% in 2020 to nearly 29% by 2024, according to a Harvard poll – dating apps hadn’t caught up. The Right Stuff became the space where you could be yourself – no apologies, excuses, or explanations needed.
The App That Actually Gets You
Unlike the swipe-til-you-drop culture of other apps, The Right Stuff was built around shared values. Think prompts about faith, commitment, and what you’re actually looking for in a partner (spoiler: it’s not just “good vibes”). The result? Connections that went deeper than surface-level attraction.
“You sometimes feel like you’re alone,” McEntee said. “But there are millions of people out there like you. We just needed an easier way to find each other.”
And honestly? It worked.
Take Mia (20) and Tayler (24), who matched on The Right Stuff in February 2023. Their connection started with shared Bible verses, evolved into marathon FaceTime sessions, and ended with a wedding in Utah just 99 days later.
“My previous apps were terrible. Nobody was like-minded at all,” Tayler recalls. Mia agrees: “The Right Stuff felt different. You could be yourself and not feel judged.”
The TikTok Twist
Here’s where it gets really interesting. While Republicans were calling for TikTok to be banned, McEntee was building a following in the millions on the platform under his handle @daterightstuff. Mixing humor, dating advice, and cultural commentary, he turned The Right Stuff from just an app into a full-blown lifestyle brand.
In 2023, he dismissed the calls to ban TikTok as “ridiculous,” telling Business Insider, “Republicans are such nerds for even doing this… they were duped.”
His viral content showed young conservatives that their political identity didn’t mean they had to be boring – or invisible. It could coexist with authenticity, humor, and actually having fun.
Fast forward to today, and the cultural landscape looks different. Being conservative is more socially acceptable, and brands are finally waking up to the fact that marketing to half the country makes business sense. But back when The Right Stuff launched? That wasn’t obvious.
“If you ignore half the country, you’re leaving an untapped opportunity on the table,” McEntee said.
Co-founder Daniel Huff put it in similar terms: “We never wanted to create just a conservative Tinder. We wanted to build a space where traditional values were celebrated, not merely tolerated.”
And that distinction matters. Because at the end of the day, The Right Stuff wasn’t about politics – it was about helping users find someone who got you, shared their vision for the future, and didn’t make them feel like they had to hide an important part of their personalities.