Current and former U.S. officials have reacted with sympathy and horror to the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at an event in Utah

Police work on the campus after Charlie Kirk was shot during Turning Point's visit to Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum)

Current and former elected officials who have experienced political violence directly in the United States reacted with sympathy and horror Wednesday to the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at an event in Utah. Kirk served as chief executive and cofounder of the youth organization Turning Point USA.

Nancy Pelosi

Former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, posted that “the horrific shooting today at Utah Valley University is reprehensible. Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation.” Pelosi’s husband was seriously injured at their California home in 2022 by a man wielding a hammer, who authorities said was a believer in conspiracy theories.

Donald Trump

President Donald Trump, who suffered a minor ear injury when he was shot at a campaign event last year, posted on Truth Social describing Kirk as a “great guy from top to bottom. GOD BLESS HIM!” He also posted, “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie."

Gabrielle Giffords

Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, a Democrat who suffered a serious brain injury from a 2011 shooting in Arizona, said she was “horrified” to hear of Kirk’s shooting. “Democratic societies will always have political disagreements, but we must never allow America to become a country that confronts those disagreements with violence,” she said on social media.

Steve Scalise

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican who was shot at practice for a charity baseball game in the Virginia suburbs in 2017, asked people on the social media platform X to “please join me in praying for Charlie Kirk after this senseless act.” The man who attacked Scalise had grievances against Trump and Republicans and was later fatally shot by police.

Josh Shapiro

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and potential national candidate, said on X, “We must speak with moral clarity. The attack on Charlie Kirk is horrifying and this growing type of unconscionable violence cannot be allowed in our society.” A fire was set at his house earlier this year while Shapiro and family members were asleep.

Gretchen Whitmer

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat who was the subject of a kidnapping plot, said on social media that “we should all come together to stand up against any and all forms of political violence.” Two men were imprisoned for their 2020 plot to kidnap the governor during her first term.