'Unique American phenomena' - The string of bloody political violence in the MAGA era

The killing of MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk is another grim episode in a continuing cycle of violence running through US politics.  

An icon in right-wing youth circles, the media personality and podcaster was an ally of President Donald Trump and had a huge following.

His death raises familiar questions about political violence, gun control and how America became so deeply - and perhaps irrevocably - divided.

Here, Sky News looks at some of the most high-profile acts of violence in the US political scene since President Trump was first elected in 2016. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list.

2017: Shooting at charity baseball game injures prominent Republican politician

Congressman Steve Scalise was among five wounded when a gunman opened fire in Virginia on people training for a charity baseball game.

The ardent Trump supporter, who went on to become House majority leader, was injured as he and fellow Republicans practiced for a game against their Democratic rivals in Congress.

The gunman, 66-year-old James T Hodgkinson, from Illinois, was shot by police and later died. He belonged to a Facebook group called "Terminate the Republican Party".

2018: Pipe bombs mailed to Democrats

In October 2018, several bombs were posted to high-profile critics of President Trump.

A crude pipe bomb was discovered sent to President Barack Obama at his family home, hours after another was found addressed to Hillary Clinton.

Pizza deliveryman Cesar Sayoc pleaded guilty to posting 16 devices "designed to look like pipe bombs". He claimed not to have wanted to hurt anyone, but acknowledged there was a risk the bombs could explode.

Sayoc's lawyers argued that he was motivated by his obsession with President Trump and his anger at Democrats, whom he blamed for the vandalism of his van, which displayed Trump stickers, NPR reported.

2020: The plot to kidnap Gretchen Whitmer

In October 2020, a plot by members of right-wing militia groups to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer was foiled.

Prosecutors said the plan was to break into Ms Whitmer's vacation home, kidnap her at gunpoint, and take her to stand "trial" on bogus treason charges and face execution.

The group responsible were angry over public health measures imposed by the governor during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the attempted kidnapping was aimed at pushing America into armed conflict with the 2020 presidential election approaching, prosecutors said.

2021: Storming of the Capitol

Perhaps the most high-profile episode of political violence in the US this century, many believe that the January 6 riots could have resulted in a coup.

The incident in Washington DC saw crowds motivated by false claims that the 2020 election was stolen pour into the Capitol building.

Four people died on the day of the violence and a number of police officers who were on duty have since taken their own lives.

Efforts to impeach and prosecute President Trump over the tumultuous episode failed, with any investigations being abandoned following his re-election last year.

Upon his return to the White House, he issued sweeping pardons for those jailed over the assault on the Capitol, including freeing people serving hefty sentences for seditious conspiracy.

2022: Attempted assassination of Brett Kavanaugh

In June 2022, a man from California attempted to assassinate conservative Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh at his home in a DC suburb.

Dressed in black, Nicholas John Roske was armed with a gun and knife and carried zip ties when he arrived in the middle of the night, authorities said.

After his arrest, Roske told a police detective that he was upset by a leaked draft opinion suggesting the Supreme Court intended to overrule Roe v. Wade, the landmark abortion case, the FBI said.

He pleaded guilty to attempted murder earlier this year.

2022: Attempted kidnap of Nancy Pelosi

In October the same year, David DePape broke into then-US House speaker Nancy Pelosi's home and assaulted her husband with a hammer.

DePape admitted that he intended to hold Ms Pelosi hostage and "break her kneecaps" if she lied to him, saying his plan was to end what he viewed as government corruption.

He was found guilty and sentenced to 30 years in prison.

2024: Donald Trump shot at campaign rally

The shot heard around the world, and the picture that may have won him the election.

There have been multiple assassination attempts against President Trump, including the one in July 2024 when he was shot and wounded in his ear by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks.

Crooks' motivations remain unclear. He was a registered Republican voter but federal campaign finance reports also show he gave $15 to a progressive political action committee on 20 January 2021, the day Biden was sworn into office.

March 2025: New Mexico Republican Party HQ fire

A blaze at the New Mexico Republican Party headquarters in March this year was being treated as arson.

Incendiary materials were found on the scene, authorities said, and spray paint on the side of the building read "ICE=KKK".

ICE - Immigration and Customs Enforcement - have become an increasingly visual presence in President Trump's sweeping deportations.

April 2025: Democrat Governor's house set alight

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were forced to flee in the middle of the night during Passover after an alleged arsonist set fire to their home in April 2025.

A high-profile Democrat linked with presidential ambitions, Mr Shapiro said he, his wife, their four children, two dogs and another family were evacuated as the fire service tackled the flames.

The motive was not immediately clear, but Mr Shapiro said officials believe it was a targeted attack.

Attacks linked to anti-Musk sentiment

Earlier this year, Elon Musk and his DOGE outfit were very high-profile in the Trump administration as they took a chainsaw to federal spending.

The billionaire and his companies have been targeted by protesters and vandalism since he made what looked like a Nazi salute at Mr Trump's inauguration.

May 2025: Two Israeli embassy employees killed in DC

In May, two Israeli embassy workers were shot dead after they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC.

The suspect, Elias Rodriguez, from Chicago, was seen in footage chanting "free, free Palestine" as he was arrested.

He is alleged to have told police: "I did it for Gaza".

Authorities were investigating the killings of Sarah Milgrim and her boyfriend Yaron Lischinsky as both a hate crime against the Jewish community and terrorism.

June 2025: Two Minnesota politicians and their spouses shot

In June, Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman and her husband were shot dead in their home.

John Hoffman, a state senator also for Minnesota, and his wife were also shot in their home but survived.

Both politicians were members of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

Governor Tim Walz, Kamala Harris' running mate in the election last year, called it a "politically-motivated assassination".

August 2025: Attack on CDC by vaccine sceptic

In August, a man who had blamed the COVID-19 vaccine for making him depressed opened fire on the headquarters of America's national public health agency.

Alleged shooter Patrick Joseph White tried to enter the CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention) HQ in Atlanta but was stopped by guards.

DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, who had three children, was shot dead while responding to the incident.

A 'unique American phenomena'?

Professor Clionadh Raleigh, chief executive of the ACLED conflict data organisation, said Kirk's killing is "another reminder of the ever-present risk of gun violence in the US".

But she added that such killings "emphasise a unique American phenomena".

"Despite politics in the US being strongly partisan and polarised, US political violence does not display any partisan inclination.

"The 'politics' behind this violence is rarely driven by an agenda, and is often incoherent and individualised."

She added: "The main threat in US political violence today comes from lone extremists, not organised militias or anything resembling precursors to civil war."

(c) Sky News 2025: 'Unique American phenomena' - The string of bloody political violence in the MAGA era