An attendee has been killed after gunfire erupted at a Donald Trump campaign rally in Pennsylvania, the Butler County district attorney told The Associated Press on Saturday, adding that the shooter was also dead.
More to come
This is a breaking update. A previous version of this story can be read below.
Donald Trump’s campaign said in a statement that he was “fine” after being whisked off the stage at a rally in Butler, Pa., after apparent gunshots rang through the crowd.
“President Trump thanks law enforcement and first responders for their quick action during this heinous act,” spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement. “He is fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility. More details will follow.”
The U.S. Secret Service said in a statement that “the former president is safe.”
Trump, the former president and presumptive Republican nominee for this November’s election, was showing off a chart of border crossing numbers when bangs started ringing through the crowd. Trump could be seen reaching with his right hand toward his neck. There appeared to be blood on his face.
He quickly ducked behind the riser as agents from his protective detail rushed the stage and screams rang out from the crowd of several thousand people. The bangs continued as agents tended to him on stage.
The crowd cheered as he got back up and pumped his fist.
Pennsylvania Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick, who was sitting in the front row, told Politico that it appeared someone behind him was shot.
“All the sudden shots started to crack, someone behind me appears to have been shot,” McCormick said. “There’s lots of blood, and then the Secret Service were all over President Trump.”
His motorcade has since left the venue.
Police began vacating the fairgrounds shortly after Trump left the stage in what local officers described as a crime scene.
President Joe Biden has been briefed on the incident, the White House said.
Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., posted a photo of Trump on X, formerly Twitter, his fist raised and his face bloody in front of an American flag, with the words: “He’ll never stop fighting to Save America.”
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the three men on Trump’s short list for vice-president, all quickly sent out statements expressing concern for the former president, with Rubio sharing an image taken as Trump was escorted off the stage with his fist in the air and a streak of blood on his face, along with the words “God protected President Trump.”
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said in a statement on X that he had been briefed on the situation and that Pennsylvania state police were on hand at the rally site.
“Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable. It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States,” he said.
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