MAGA Influencer Charlie Kirk Dies After Being Shot at Utah Event

Charlie Kirk, a 31-year-old right-wing influencer and founder of the conservative youth group Turning Point USA, was shot in the neck in Utah, according to a report from Deseret News and videos posted to social media.

President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that Kirk had died. Kirk’s spokesperson, Andrew Kolvet, confirmed his death to the New York Times. During a press conference Wednesday night the Governor of Utah, Spencer Cox, said a “person of interest” was in custody, but also said “we will find you” about the shooter, giving conflicting statements about whether they’ve actually apprehended the shooter.

Kirk was speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, when a single shot was fired around 12:10 p.m. local time. Video posted to X captured the shooting, which showed Kirk’s head jolting backward after what sounds like a gunshot.

Videos of the shooting spread widely

Videos taken from the scene of the shooting have been posted on X, though several have been deleted for violating the social media platform’s terms of service. Some of the most graphic videos, including one taken relatively close that shows a large amount of blood, are still up as of this writing.

Kirk established himself as a high-profile figure in the MAGA movement by debating college kids on political issues, which is what he was doing when he was shot. Kirk’s appearance in Utah was the first of what was scheduled to be a 15-city “American Comeback Tour.”

Kirk’s last words

Another graphic video posted to X captured the conversation Kirk was having with someone on campus before being shot. Someone in the crowd asked the conservative influencer about trans people and mass shootings. Kirk has argued that mass shooters are disproportionately trans people.

“Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?” someone in the crowd asked.

“Too many,” Kirk replied to cheers from the crowd.

“The answer is five. Now five is a lot. Let me give you some credit. Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?” the unseen person asked.

“Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk responded before being shot.

The real shooter might still be at large

Utah Valley University earlier reported that a shooter was in custody, and unverified video purporting to show the gunman went viral on X. But the man who was arrested in the viral video was not the shooter, according to the New York Times.

Police said during a press conference on Wednesday night that the man they arrested from the viral video remains in custody for obstruction of justice but he wasn’t the shooter.

A spokesperson for the university initially said the shooter was located at the Losee Center, a building about 200 yards away, according to the New York Times. But it’s unclear if that remains true.

The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody. Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi.
We will provide updates when able.

— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) September 10, 2025

Kash Patel tweeted that a “subject” was in custody but didn’t provide details. A reporter at the press conference with the governor of Utah asked about the tweet to see if Patel was referring to the man in the viral video and authorities clarified that Patel was referring to a new person.

Trump sends his condolences

“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” Trump wrote on Truth Social at 3:40 p.m. ET.

“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!” Trump continued. The president has ordered all American flags to be flown at half-staff until Sept. 14, according to the New York Times.

When news of the shooting first broke, FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X that agents traveled to the scene of the shooting.

“We are closely monitoring reports of the tragic shooting involving Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University,” Patel wrote. “Our thoughts are with Charlie, his loved ones, and everyone affected. Agents will be on the scene quickly and the FBI stands in full support of the ongoing response and investigation.”

Gun rights advocacy

Kirk has a long history of supporting gun rights, including in 2023 when he argued that anyone aspiring to zero gun deaths in America was arguing for a “utopian society” that could never be achieved.

“It’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment,” Kirk argued at the time.

Charlie Kirk: “It’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment”https://t.co/uoM6TqnAgJpic.twitter.com/mbJSa2Lzmi

— Jason S. Campbell (@JasonSCampbell) April 6, 2023

High-profile figures respond

Billionaire Elon Musk, the owner of X, responded to the videos circulating on social media, writing, “The shot looked real bad, but I sure hope Charlie makes it somehow. The Tesla CEO also wrote “the left is the party of murder.”

Fellow conservative commentators on X also responded with an outpouring of support for Kirk. “Everyone please stop what you are doing and pray for Charlie Kirk. Please,” Candace Owens wrote on the social media platform.

White supremacist Nick Fuentes, who once had someone show up to his own house with a gun, wrote on X that it “feels like a nightmare,” describing it as “one of the most horrific things” he’s ever seen.

“I feel absolutely gutted and devastated. Pray for Charlie Kirk’s soul, his young family and for our country. The violence and hatred has to stop. Our country needs Christ now more than ever,” Fuentes wrote.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat and proponent of stricter gun control laws, posted to X that Americans must reject political violence. “The attack on Charlie Kirk is disgusting, vile, and reprehensible. In the United States of America, we must reject political violence in EVERY form,” Newsom wrote.

Vice President JD Vance showed his support for Kirk in multiple tweets before confirmation of his death, writing, “Say a prayer for Charlie Kirk, a genuinely good guy and a young father.” Vance also shared a photo of the two men, along with President Donald Trump’s son Don Jr.

Dear God, protect Charlie in his darkest hour. pic.twitter.com/RqNYfHLs2b

— JD Vance (@JDVance) September 10, 2025

Motive still unknown

Kirk’s last post on X before the shooting said that it was “100% necessary to politicize the senseless murder of Iryna Zarutska,” a 23-year-old woman who was recently killed on a light rail train in Charlotte, North Carolina.

If we want things to change, it’s 100% necessary to politicize the senseless murder of Iryna Zarutska because it was politics that allowed a savage monster with 14 priors to be free on the streets to kill her. pic.twitter.com/ZP7cFNDtvx

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) September 10, 2025

Jason Chaffetz, a former Republican congressman from Utah, suggested without evidence on Fox News that the shooter might be trans. It’s become a common claim on the right that most mass shooters are trans, something that’s not true.

There was another school shooting in the neighboring state of Colorado on Wednesday, where at least three kids were injured at Evergreen High School, just outside Denver. All three children are in critical condition, according to CBS News.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.