Charlie Kirk killed while launching Turning Point USA campus tour

Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was fatally shot while kicking off the organization's fall tour of college campuses.

"The American Comeback Tour" was in the middle of its first event, at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, when Kirk suffered what turned out to be a deadly gunshot wound. It was supposed to be the first of 15 dates going from September 10 to October 29, spanning nine states with more events that were "to be announced soon," its website states. 

Kirk was taken to a hospital from campus, with President Donald Trump later posting on Truth Social that he had died. A source told Fox News that a suspect was still on the loose.

CHARLIE KIRK, TURNING POINT USA FOUNDER, DEAD AT 31 AFTER UTAH CAMPUS SHOOTING

Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, throws hats to the public on May 1, 2025, at UC San Diego's Town Square. (Michael Ho Wai Lee/SOPA Images/LightRocket )

Kirk was speaking from what was dubbed a "Prove Me Wrong" table when he was shot.

Following the Utah Valley University speaking engagement, Kirk had been scheduled to appear next at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado. 

The "nationwide campus tour aimed at equipping students with the tools to push back against leftwing indoctrination in academia and reclaim their right to free speech" held events earlier this year in Florida, Illinois, Texas and Wyoming, according to a press release. 

"More than just a celebration of conservative momentum, this tour is a direct response to those trying to silence dissenting voices," the press release said. 

Tickets were available free of charge both for students and the general public on the tour's website.

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Law enforcement tapes off an area after Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, was shot at the Utah Valley University, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025, in Orem, Utah. (Tess Crowley/The Deseret News via AP)

"The American comeback is powerful and real, and it’s sweeping the nation," Kirk said in a February statement. "However, one of the last strongholds of far-left, increasingly insane and out-of-touch ideologues is found inside the formerly hallowed halls of higher education. We have many of these purveyors of anti-American indoctrination on the run, but when they regroup, they will do so from inside the academy. So we will take the fight to them."

TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk appears at a Utah Valley University speaking event in Orem, Utah, U.S. September 10, 2025. (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune via REUTERS)

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Kirk also had been slated to host a four-day annual "AmericaFest" conference in December in Phoenix, Ariz.