In what Governor Tim Walz described as a "politically motivated assassination" attempt, two Minnesota state lawmakers were attacked in their homes on Saturday. The attacks left one politician dead and another seriously injured.
Police are hunting for a suspect, Vance Luther Boelter, who remains at large on Sunday morning.
The attacks drew condemnation from across the political spectrum. President Donald Trump said in a statement that "such horrific violence will not be tolerated".
Minnesota-based Democrat US Senator Amy Klobuchar referred to it as "an attack on everything we stand for as a democracy."
Who were the perpetrators?
State representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were shot and killed in their home, the governor said.
She had served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for 20 years, and was speaker of the chamber from 2019-25.
State Senator John Hoffman and his wife survived after being shot multiple times. They were operated on. Democrats make up both legislators.
What took place?
So far, local law enforcement has confirmed that the attacks occurred in the early hours of Saturday in the cities of Brooklyn Park and Champlin, Minnesota.
Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said police received a call at 02:00 local time about an incident at Hoffman's house.
Another call to police came in at 03:35, when officers were checking on Hortman's home.
Police exchanged gunfire with the suspect at Hortman's house nearby, but he escaped. A manhunt is underway.
According to officials, the assailant was driving a vehicle that resembled a police car, posing as a police officer, and wearing a badge and uniform.
Who is the suspect?
Police said they are looking for a single suspect, 57-year-old Vance Luther Boelter. They did not elaborate on a possible cause. He has been added to the FBI's Most Wanted list, and they have offered a $50,000 reward for information that leads to Boelter's arrest and conviction. Boelter served on the same state workforce development board as Hoffman as a political appointee. "We don't know the nature of the relationship or if they actually knew each other," said Mr Evans.
Chief Mark Bruley of the Brooklyn Park Police said authorities found a manifesto and a target list of individuals in the suspect's vehicle.
According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the list contained the names of several politicians, abortion providers, and politicians who supported abortion. Another Minnesota lawmaker, Democratic US Representative Kelly Morrison, told the Star Tribune that she was on the list.
US Senator Tina Smith of Minnesota, a Democrat, was named on the target list, a spokesman for her office confirmed to the BBC.
Boelter is a security contractor who has worked in Africa and the Middle East, according to an online CV. He has also had managerial roles at firms in Minnesota.
He texted a troubling message to friends at a Minneapolis residence, where he had rented a room and would stay one or two nights a week, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Boelter said: "I'm going to be gone for a while. I just want to let you know how much I love you both and how much I wish things hadn't turned out this way."
What is the fallout?
A massive manhunt for the suspect began Saturday and continued overnight into Sunday, as some areas in suburban Minneapolis were put under shelter-place-orders for part of the weekend.
Law enforcement in the neighbouring state of South Dakota warned residents on Saturday afternoon to watch out for a maroon Buick, the Star Tribune reported, saying it was potentially being driven by "person of interest in the events that have happened in Minnesota" and could be travelling with someone considered "armed and dangerous".
Even though thousands of people attended rallies across the state, the governor discouraged Minnesotans from attending Saturday protests against the Trump administration's policies that had been planned across the US. The attacks have also put a renewed spotlight on the issue of political violence in the US.
In 2024, two attempts to assassinate President Trump were unsuccessful. An arsonist set fire to the Democrat home of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro in April of this year.
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