“He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us.

“Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

Footage of the brutal attack has circulated on X, formerly Twitter, depicting the moment a loud bang was heard.

Kirk was violently struck in the neck before collapsing in his chair, and blood was seen pouring from the wound.

Just before the shooting, Kirk was taking questions from audience members, when he uttered his final words.

One person in the crowd asked: “Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?”

“Too many,” the activist replied.

In a follow-up question, someone replied: “Do you know how many mass shooters there have been