Charlie Kirk: Trump ally shot dead at campus event in Utah

Kirk’s death marks dramatic escalation in rising US political violencepublished at 00:33 British Summer Time 11 September

00:33 BST 11 September

Courtney Subramanian
Reporting from Washington DC

Charlie Kirk’s death marks a dramatic escalation in rising political violence across the country in recent years. The shooting comes just months after a gunman entered the homes of two Minnesota Democratic lawmakers and their spouses, killing one couple and injuring the other.

Between 2016 and 2025, there were 25 attacks and threats targeting elected officials, political candidates, judges and government employees that were motivated by partisan beliefs, according to the Center for Strategic International Studies. For comparison, only two such incidents were reported in the two previous decades.

The increase in partisan attacks spans the ideological spectrum but has done little to lower the temperature in political rhetoric. Security, too has become a key concern among elected officials.

In July 2024, President Donald Trump faced an assassination attempt during one of his campaign rallies. Only two months later, the Republican then-presidential candidate was the target of a second assassination attempt. The man accused of that attempt is on trial in Florida this week.

More recently, Trump ended Secret Service protection for former Vice-President Kamala Harris after her security detail had been quietly extended by former President Joe Biden. The move raised safety concerns among Harris’s staff as she is about to appear in front of crowds for her upcoming book tour.

“We must speak with moral clarity,” said Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, a Democrat whose home was attacked and set ablaze in April. “The attack on Charlie Kirk is horrifying and this growing type of unconscionable violence cannot be allowed in our society,”