Who is Charlie Kirk? What to know about the Trump ally killed in Utah
Conservative media personality Charlie Kirk was shot at an outdoor event in Utah on Sept. 10.
Kirk, 31, was the founder of the Arizona-based conservative group Turning Point USA and a top ally of President Donald Trump.
At the time he was shot, he was hosting an event at Utah Valley University titled "Prove Me Wrong," where he challenged students who disagreed with him to a debate.
Video posted on social media showed thousands of students gathered around Kirk, who was seated in a stool under a tent and speaking into a microphone. The sound of a gunshot could be heard and a bullet could be seen entering the side of Kirk's neck. Blood gushed from the wound.
Trump announced Kirk's death on Truth Social a few hours later.
Kirk grew Turning Point into a national heavyweight
Kirk had been a rising star within the Republican Party over the past ten years, growing his own online profile and expanding Turning Point USA into a power broker within the GOP.
A speech he delivered at the 2016 Republican convention helped introduce him to a national audience.
Then 22 years old, Kirk energized the Cleveland crowd with an applause line that the GOP was “the party of youth and diversity." He volunteered a to-the-point slogan irreverent for its time: “Big government sucks.”
In the two presidential election cycles since then, Kirk's organization has become a political heavyweight in Arizona and nationwide. Turning Point's campaign wing regularly hosted Trump's presidential campaign events in Arizona, a swing state, during the 2024 election cycle.
The group is controversial even among Republicans. Its leaders have sought to oust those they disagree with. During the 2024 election cycle, Kirk publicly criticized the leadership of former Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel and called on his donors to stop giving to the national party. McDaniel stepped down months later.
Kirk himself has pursued provocative political positions, such as a social media campaign to discredit the civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. He has encouraged traditional gender roles, praising the values of "marriage and motherhood" for young women.
Turning Point now boasts allies at the very top of the GOP's chain of command.
"Charlie Kirk and Turning Point have been a major reason why the conservative movement is finally growing a spine," Donald Trump Jr. said in a written comment to The Arizona Republic in 2024.
"Turning Point's influence has grown because they pick the right fights, work their butts off, and they don't apologize for it. ... That inspires people."
Kirk has two young children
Kirk was born in Illinois and raised in the Chicago suburbs.
He got involved in politics as a high school student and later dropped out of Harper College to pursue political activism.
Kirk was 18 years old when he co-founded Turning Point USA with conservative activist Bill Montgomery in 2012. The political group is headquartered in Phoenix.
Kirk married Arizona native Erika Frantzve in 2021. They have two young children, a son and a daughter.