State Rep. Melissa Hortman, 55 years old, and her husband were shot and killed in their Brooklyn Park home. Elsewhere in Champlin, state Sen. John Hoffman, 60, and his wife were also shot at home and are recovering after undergoing surgery.
Gov. Tim Walz described the shooting as “an act of targeted political violence.” A manhunt is underway for the shooter, who was posing as a law enforcement officer, according to authorities.
This past April, an alleged arsonist targeted Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro with a firebomb. A warrant cited “perceived injustices to the people of Palestine.”
Luigi Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges, wrote a manifesto laying out his grievances against the insurance industry while also sharing his views on the politics of “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski.
And those are just some examples of political violence from the past year alone.
In 2021, Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol as lawmakers were about the certify Joe Biden’s 2020 victory. In 2017, a gunman shot members of Congress at a baseball diamond in Alexandria, Va., wounding four people, including Republican Rep. Steve Scalise. And in 2011, a gunman killed six people in Arizona and seriously wounded Democratic Rep. Gabby Giffords, who was holding an event for constituents.
