Trump Jr. invokes Charlie Kirk's assassination in last-minute Election Day appeal to Republican voters

Donald Trump Jr. issued a last-minute appeal urging Republicans to turn out and vote, invoking the assassination of Charlie Kirk to drive home his message.Donald Trump Jr invokes the assassination of Charlie Kirk to drive home his message. (AFP)Trump Jr. invokes Kirk's assassination in voting appealIn his post, Trump Jr. shared an image of Kirk holding a microphone, accompanied by the message, "Vote Like the Other Side Will Kill You for Talking."He added a separate caption urging supporters to treat voting as a matter of utmost importance, writing, "Vote like your lives, and the lives of your children depend, on it. BECAUSE THEY DO!!!"Trump Jr.'s friendship with Charlie KirkTrump Jr. has repeatedly spoken about his close relationship with Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated while attending an event at Utah Valley University in Utah.During the Republican Midterm Convention in September, Trump Jr. paid tribute to the late conservative activist, remembering him as a “happy warrior” who stood up for liberty and maintained respectful exchanges even with people who held opposing views.He also called on Republicans to keep Kirk's message alive, vowing: “We will not back down, we will not fold.”Also read | Fact check: Trump did not say three people died every week at the at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool before he fixed itTrump Jr. had previously expressed his grief over the death of Kirk, describing the conservative activist as more than a friend and likening him to a “little brother.” In a tribute shared at the time, he wrote, “Charlie wasn’t just a friend — he was like a little brother to me – and to millions of people around the world – he was a true inspiration."Charlie Kirk was killed during Utah campus eventKirk, the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA and a prominent figure in the MAGA movement, was shot and killed while participating in an outdoor debate on a university campus.Tyler Robinson, the accused gunman in Kirk's assassination, has confessed to the shooting and is facing trial in Utah on murder charges. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.Benny Johnson echoes Trump Jr.'s voting appealTrump Jr. was not the only conservative figure to invoke Kirk's assassination in a last-minute voting appeal. MAGA podcaster Benny Johnson shared a similar message on social media earlier Tuesday, recalling the attacks on Kirk and Trump, along with violence against Trump supporters.“I watched them kill Charlie Kirk and celebrate it. I watched them shoot our President in the head and celebrate it. I watched them kill Trump supporters and celebrate it,” he tweeted on X.Also read | US midterm elections 2026: Three possible outcomes and what they mean for TrumpJohnson went on to frame the political climate as a larger moral struggle, urging his followers to vote and warning that the violence could extend to them and their families."If they can shoot Charlie and Trump — what will they do to you and your family? This is not a political battle, it's a spiritual one. We are fighting good vs. evil. Darkness vs. light. Be on the side of life. God help us, we must win. Vote," Johnson wrote.