Conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, has died after being shot Wednesday at an event at Utah Valley University, President Donald Trump in a Truth Social post.
The shooting comes amid a spike in political violence in the United States across all parts of the ideological spectrum.
Here’s what we know so far:
The victim: 31-year-old Kirk personified the pugnacious, populist conservatism that has taken over the Republican Party in the age of Trump. He launched his organization, Turning Point USA, in 2012, targeting younger people and venturing onto liberal-leaning college campuses where many GOP activists were nervous to tread.
The shooter: Authorities are still searching for the suspect, the mayor says. A person who was taken into custody at Utah Valley University was not the suspect, according to a person familiar with the investigation and was not authorized to speak publicly. It was not clear if authorities were still searching the campus for a suspect.
The location: Kirk was speaking at a debate hosted by TPUSA. The event at UVU had been met with divided opinions on campus. An online petition calling for university administrators to bar Kirk from appearing received nearly 1,000 signatures. The university issued a statement last week citing First Amendment rights and affirming its “commitment to free speech, intellectual inquiry, and constructive dialogue.”
Updates take time: Compiling accurate and thorough information on an active shooting takes time. Reporters are working to piece together the details from eyewitness accounts, authorities and other sources.
2 min ago
A local mayor urges people to report anything suspicious as shooting suspect remains at large
By ZEKE MILLER, LINDSEY WHITEHURST
Share
Mayor David Young of the north-central Utah city of Orem says several local, state and federal law enforcement agencies are working the investigation while the suspect in Kirk’s fatal shooting remains at large.
He 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.
