By Antonis
Copyright thenationalherald
Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, was fatally shot Wednesday at an event at a Utah college, officials said.
President Donald Trump said Kirk was shot and killed as he was speaking at Utah Valley University. The shooting quickly drew reaction from leading political figures, including some victims of political violence.
Videos posted to social media show Kirk speaking into a handheld microphone at the university’s Sorensen Center courtyard, sitting under a white tent emblazoned with the slogans, “The American Comeback” and “Prove Me Wrong.”
A single shot rings out and Kirk reaches up with his hand as a large volume of blood gushes from the left side of his neck. Stunned spectators gasp and scream. Some run away.
A “person of interest” was in custody Wednesday evening, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said, though no charges were immediately announced.
Moments before the shooting
Video shows Kirk had been taking questions from an audience member about mass shootings and gun violence.
“Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?” an audience member asked.
Kirk responded, “Too many.”
The questioner followed up: “Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”
“Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk asked.
Then a single shot rang out.
Thousands turned out for Kirk’s appearance and police were also present
Jeff Long, chief of Utah Valley University Police Department, says six officers working at Kirk’s campus event and more than 3,000 people were in attendance.
The police chief says his officers coordinated their operation with Kirk’s security team, and plainclothes police officers were also present.
At the time he was shot, Kirk was speaking to the throng in a low area surrounded by campus buildings.
Long said law enforcement tries to get the “bases covered.” But he added, “unfortunately today we didn’t, and because of that we have this tragic incident.”
Students, meanwhile, told The Associated Press they saw no metal detectors or bag checks. The amount of security appeared consistent with other speaking engagements on Kirk’s national tour.
FBI appeals to the public for information about the shooting
The FBI’s Salt Lake City office has added an online form to its website where the public can report information about Kirk’s killing.
The form says the FBI is “seeking information regarding the shooting at Utah Valley University that took place on September 10, 2025.”
It asks the person submitting the form to include their name and contact information and then includes a section for information about the incident.
Donald Trump Jr. says Kirk wasn’t a threat to anyone
In a lengthy social media post, President Trump’s son says Kirk wasn’t just a friend, but was “like a little brother to me” and a “true inspiration.”
Trump Jr. said Kirk “changed the direction of this nation” because “there is no question that Charlie’s work and his voice helped my father win the presidency.”
He said Kirk was civil and kind, and listened and responded with respect.
“The only ‘threat’ he ever posed was that he was incredibly effective. He was a powerful messenger of truth, and people heard that truth. That’s what made him a target.”
Democrats in Congress mourn Kirk
Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan appeared visibly upset while speaking to reporters on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. She said that she cried when she found out that Kirk had died.
“All of us have got to work together and deescalate the heat and the rhetoric in this country, she said. Dingell added: “And remember we’re Americans, and you can disagree in a way that doesn’t end in the horrible way today did.”
Rep. Jamie Raskin expressed condolences to Kirk’s family, adding, “What a nightmare this whole thing is.”
“It’s a very dark time with the political violence spiraling out of control and gun violence a threat to everybody,” Raskin continued.
Utah governor says Kirk’s death carries a tragic message for the state of the country
Gov. Spencer Cox said that Kirk had come to the Utah Valley University campus to represent his conservative views and debate. Targeting people for their ideas threatens the country’s “constitutional foundations,” he said.
“We just need every single person in this country to think about where we are and where we want to be,” he said. “I don’t care what his politics are. I care that he was an American.”
Cox said the first of the inalienable rights enshrined in the Declaration of Independence is “life, and today a life was taken. Charlie Kirk was first and foremost a husband and a dad to young children. He was also very much politically involved. And that’s why he was here on campus. Charlie believed in the power of free speech and debate to shape ideas and to persuade people.”
President of the university where Kirk was killed calls his death tragic
Utah Valley University President Astrid Tuminez posted on X that the school is “shocked and saddened” by Kirk’s death.
She expressed her condolences to his family and said they are grieving with the many people from the school who saw the “unspeakable tragedy” unfold.
“We firmly believe that UVU is a place to share ideas and to debate openly and respectfully. Any attempt to infringe on those rights has no place here,” the statement said.
Kirk backers leave flowers at Turning Point headquarters
The flags outside Turning Point USA’s Phoenix headquarters have been lowered to half staff.
Bouquets of flowers delivered by well-wishers are piling up by the main door to one of at least three buildings that make up Turning Point’s campus. The organization’s presence has grown steadily in a quiet neighborhood at the base of South Mountain park.
Former President George W. Bush says violence must be ‘purged from the public square’
Bust lamented the killing and said “an open exchange of opposing ideas should be sacrosanct” on a college campus, where Kirk was shot.
In his statement, Bush added: “Members of other political parties are not our enemies; they are our fellow citizens.”
The Republican ex-president closed the statement by asking God to bless Kirk and his family and “guide America toward civility.”
Another former president, Democrat Bill Clinton, wrote on X that he was saddened and angered by the killing, adding he hoped “we all go through some serious introspection” and “redouble our efforts to engage in debate passionately, yet peacefully.”
Kirk follower says he went to Turning Point USA’s headquarters to give large donation in person
Retiree Alex Lane said news of Kirk’s killing prompted him to head to the organization’s Phoenix headquarters and hand the organization a $10,000 check.
“I hope and trust that they’re going to continue with the message that he had,” Lane, 54, told The Associated Press while standing outside the headquarters. Lane said he was a follower of Kirk’s and had given to Turning Point before, but never such a large sum.
“It’s a huge loss, there’s no question about it,” Lane said. “But I think the important thing for people to understand is that (Kirk’s message) is going to continue. The assassin didn’t stop it. If anything, I think it will bring more attention to his message.”
Lawmakers reflect on Kirk’s influence
Multiple Republicans in Congress knew Kirk personally and were devastated by his death.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida spoke on the Capitol steps, reflecting on his influence on her political journey. Luna said she was planning to go to medical school before Kirk recruited her to work as his national Hispanic outreach director. She attended events where Kirk debated students, like the one he hosted today.
“That conversation needs to happen,” Luna said. “You can’t squelch that.”
Kirk killed with single shot in supposed targeted attack, authorities say
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox called the killing a “political assassination.”
A “person of interest” was in custody Wednesday evening, Cox said, though no charges were immediately announced.
“This is a dark day for our state,” Cox said.
“We are actively looking for anyone and everyone who has any information related to the shooting,” he said.
Utah authorities said the shooter wore dark clothing and fired from a roof on campus some distance away.
RFK Jr., son and nephew of assassinated leaders, laments another loss
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appeared to invoke his family’s losses as he reacted to Kirk’s killing.
“Once again, a bullet has silenced the most eloquent truth teller of an era,” Kennedy wrote on social media. He called Kirk a “relentless and courageous crusader for free speech.”
Kennedy’s father, for whom he was named, was assassinated in 1968 as he sought the Democratic presidential nomination.
The elder Kennedy was an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War before many elected leaders in Washington. He also had been an advocate for civil rights legislation as attorney general during his brother’s presidency and after John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963.
Kirk fans pay their respects at the Turning Point headquarters in Phoenix
One man delivered flowers and wiped tears from his face as he left. He said he was too broken up to speak to reporters.
On the sidewalk, 14-year-old Samuel Monahan embraced his parents in prayer.
“This is what happens when we’re without God,” said Monahan.
The teenager said he admired Kirk for being a man of God who cared about people. The country is so polarized, he said, “but it didn’t have to be that way because we all bow our heads under one flag and under one God.”
Former President Obama condemns Kirk’s ‘despicable’ killing
“This kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy,” former President Barack Obama wrote on X.
He said he and former first lady Michelle Obama will pray for Kirk’s wife and two young children.
Chaffetz says he’s angry about Kirk’s death
“It makes me mad. I’m so mad that this happened in our backyard. It’s an embarrassment,” the Utah Republican former member of Congress told Fox News Channel.
Chaffetz was at the event where Kirk was shot.
“We’re better than this, but there’s somebody out there who is evil, absolute total, complete evil and they need to be taken down,” he said.
Kirk’s appearance at Utah Valley University marked the kickoff of his national college tour
He was calling it “The American Comeback Tour.” And he was featuring his “Prove Me Wrong Table,” where Kirk sat, as he was Wednesday, and fielded questions from students, including those who disagreed with him.
He also had appearances slated for Colorado State University, the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Virginia Tech University, Utah State University, the University of North Dakota, Montana State University, Indiana University Louisiana State University and the University of Mississippi over the next two months.
The scene around campus
Armed officers are walking around the neighborhood bordering the campus, knocking on doors and asking for information on the shooter.
Officers have been seen looking at a photo on their phones and showing it to people to see if they recognize a person of interest.
Mayor urges people to report anything suspicious
Mayor David Young of the north-central Utah city of Orem says several local, state and federal law enforcement agencies are investigating and that the suspect in Kirk’s shooting remains at large.
Young says police in Orem and at Utah Valley University are among many agencies involved in the investigation.
Meanwhile, authorities have told anyone at Utah Valley University to ‘secure in place’ after Wednesday’s shooting. The campus was closed, and a post on the school’s emergency information page told those still on campus to call officials to be escorted out.
An increase in violence against public officials
Kirk’s killing follows instances of political violence in the United States in recent months, including the assassination of a Democratic Minnesota state lawmaker and her husband in June and the fatal shooting of two Israeli Embassy staffers in Washington in May.
Though little is known about the shooter or the motive in this case, it can’t be ignored that polarization and normalization of violence have become threaded through U.S. politics, said Kurt Braddock, an assistant professor of public communication at American University.
Braddock pointed to data from Princeton University’s Bridging Divides Initiative, which shows that threat and harassment incidents against local officials also have been gradually increasing.
“We’re moving in a very dangerous direction, and I think we have been moving in this direction for quite some time,” Braddock said.
