Conservative Charlie Kirk dead after being shot during Utah event, suspect at large

(NEXSTAR) — Conservative influencer Charlie Kirk is dead after being shot during an event in Utah, President Donald Trump has confirmed.

“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

Kirk’s spokesman also confirmed the activist’s death to the New York Times.

Kirk, 31, was speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, about 40 miles south of Salt Lake City, during an event for the organization he co-founded, Turning Point. Videos posted to social media show Kirk speaking into a handheld microphone while sitting under a white tent emblazoned with the slogans “The American Comeback” and “Prove Me Wrong.”

A single gunshot was fired shortly after noon MT, moments after Kirk was reportedly asked about gun rights and mass shootings. Videos online showed Kirk then reach for his neck with his right hand as he bled heavily. Another video posted to social media showed multiple people carrying Kirk to a vehicle.

Stunned spectators could be heard gasping and screaming before people started to run away. The Associated Press was able to confirm the videos were taken at the Sorensen Center courtyard on the Utah Valley University campus, where Kirk was speaking Wednesday.

Kirk was said to be in critical condition at a hospital shortly before 1 p.m. MT.

Kirk asked about mass shootings, gun violence before shooting

Kirk was speaking at a debate hosted by his nonprofit political organization. Immediately before the shooting, Kirk was 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?” the 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.

Suspect not in custody

Initially, the university said a suspect had been taken into custody, but a spokesperson has since said that person is not believed to be the shooter.

A spokesperson with the Orem Fire Department confirmed to Nexstar’s KTVX that law enforcement is breaching a building on the UVU campus, describing this as an active shooter situation.

Orem Mayor David Young said the suspect in the shooting remains at large. Authorities are not telling people to shelter in place, however.

Those in attendance told KTVX that while they had to get tickets to attend the event, they did not have to show those tickets on Wednesday. Some who had not gotten tickets ahead of time said they were able to attend as well.

UVU event met with divided opinions, petition

Kirk was speaking at a debate hosted by his nonprofit political organization and, according to witnesses, had been asked about transgender gun rights just before the shooting.

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.”

A witness at the scene told Nexstar’s KTVX that the shooting appeared targeted.

“We all heard a shooting, like a big bang. We thought it was confetti. Then, everyone started ducking down. And then, I look over at Charlie Kirk and I see blood coming from his neck,” UVU student Luke Pitman said.

Former Utah congressman Jason Chaffetz, a Republican who was at the event, said in an interview on Fox News Channel that he heard one shot and saw Kirk go back.

“It seemed like it was a close shot,” Chaffetz said, who seemed shaken as he spoke. He said there was a light police presence at the event and Kirk had some security but not enough.

“Utah is one of the safest places on the planet,” he said. “And so we just don’t have these types of things.”

The UVU campus has closed for the day, officials confirmed.

FBI responding, local lawmakers briefed

FBI Director Kash Patel said his agency is “closely monitoring reports of the tragic shooting involving Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University.”

Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R) wrote on X that he had been briefed about the situation and that “those responsible will be held fully accountable.” Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) also wrote that he was “tracking the situation” and “praying for Charlie Kirk and the students gathered there.”

Trump has also ordered American flags to be lowered to half-staff until Sunday at sunset in honor of Kirk, the New York Times reports.

What is Turning Point, and who was Charlie Kirk?

Kirk founded Turning Point in suburban Chicago in 2012 alongside William Montgomery, a tea party activist, to proselytize on college campuses for low taxes and limited government. It was not an immediate success.

But Kirk’s zeal for confronting liberals in academia eventually won over an influential set of conservative financiers.

Despite early misgivings, Turning Point enthusiastically backed Trump after he clinched the GOP nomination in 2016. Kirk served as a personal aide to Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, during the general election campaign.

Soon, Kirk was a regular presence on cable TV, where he leaned into the culture wars and heaped praise on the then-president. Trump and his son were equally effusive and often spoke at Turning Point conferences.

Kirk is survived by his wife, former Miss Arizona Erika Frantzve, and their two children, a 3-year-old girl and a 1-year-old son.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.