Charlie Kirk, Prominent Trump Ally, Dead At 31

Prominent Donald Trump supporter Charlie Kirk has died at age 31, Trump himself confirmed. On September 10, Kirk was shot in the neck while speaking to students at Utah Valley University. In a Truth Social post, the president broke the news, writing, "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. 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 was one of the right's most well-known — and controversial — media figures and political activists. The conservative commentator was a college dropout who set out to help Republicans appeal to university students and promote right-wing ideals on campuses by co-founding the nonprofit Turning Point USA. He was also the CEO of Turning Point Action, a political organization that works to get conservative politicians elected.

Kirk's rise to political prominence began when he got an op-ed published on the Breitbart News website as a high school student. The article accused textbooks of having a liberal bias, and he parlayed the attention it received into media appearances and speaking gigs at college campuses. It was at the latter that Kirk's late Turning Point USA cofounder, Tea Party activist Bill Montgomery, took him under his wing, and Kirk was participating in one of their organization's events, his "American Comeback Tour," when he got shot.

Immediately after the news of Charlie Kirk's shooting broke, politicians from both sides of the aisle took to social media to decry violence and express their hope that he would be okay. Kirk was a close ally of Donald Trump who campaigned on his behalf, and the president used his Truth Social platform to issue a call for prayers. He also praised the podcast host, writing, "We must all pray for Charlie Kirk, who has been shot. A great guy from top to bottom. GOD BLESS HIM!" When Trump announced that he was returning to the site of his assassination attempt for a rally in 2024, Kirk had shared his support on X, writing, "Nothing will stop this man or our movement." In response to the UVU shooting, House Speaker Mike Johnson shared a post that read, "Please join us in praying for our good friend, Charlie Kirk."

Numerous Democrats also used X to respond to the shooting. Nancy Pelosi, who is no stranger to the devastation political violence can cause, wrote, "The horrific shooting today at Utah Valley University is reprehensible. Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation. All Americans should pray for Charlie Kirk's recovery and hold the entire UVU community in our hearts as they endure the trauma of this gun violence." Former vice president Kamala Harris and her fellow California politician, Governor Gavin Newsom, joined Pelosi in condemning violence, with the latter writing, "The attack on Charlie Kirk is disgusting, vile, and reprehensible. In the United States of America, we must reject political violence in EVERY form."