A democratic legislator was killed in the Mennisota State Council and her husband, on Saturday morning, in what appears to be a “assassination with political motives”, while a second politician and his wife were injured in a separate attack, according to the governor of the state, Tim Walz.
“I have been described in Minnesota – my friend and my dear colleague, Speaker of Parliament, Melissa Hortmann and her husband Mark, were shot in early this morning, apparently, that he was assassinated by political motives,” Walz told reporters. He continued, “Our mandate has lost a great leader.”
Walzal added that in a second attack, Senator John Hoffman and his wife, from Champlin, were wounded by several gunshots, and they underwent surgery, pointing out that he was “optimistic about” caution “that they are Singwan from the” assassination attempt. “
Political motives
“This was an act of targeted political violence,” said Walz, who was a candidate for the position of Vice President in the previous presidential elections. Peaceful dialogue is the basis of our democracy. We do not solve our differences with violence or under the threat of weapons. ”
The law enforcement authorities said that the gunman impersonated a police officer, and escaped after the exchange of fire with the police who responded to the attack. She added that a large -scale search for the suspect is underway, according to Reuters.
Hortman was the most prominent democratic leader in the state legislative council, a former president of the Council, and was first elected in 2004.
Hoffman is a democratic member of the state’s Senate, and was first elected in 2012. Hoffman runs a consulting company named “Hoffman Stratick Advisers”, and previously held the position of Vice Chairman of the “Anuka Hinibin” school, which runs the largest educational zone in Minnesota.
Hoffman and Hortmann are circles located north of Minneapolis.
The suspect escapes
Drew Evans, the supervisor of the Criminal Arrests Office, revealed that the authorities are actively searching for a suspect, according to the Associated Press.
The officials explained that the suspect was wearing a law enforcement officer. Evans added that the body of the former deputy and her husband will be dissected to determine the nature of the injuries, but he suggested that Hortmann and her husband were affected by their wounds caused by gunshots.
The Public Safety Commissioner, Bob Johnson, said that the suspect was impersonating the law enforcement officer. He said: «The suspect took advantage of Zenna’s official confidence, and what is supposed to represent the official Zina.
This betrayal is very worrying for those who wear the badge with honor and responsibility. ” The shootings occurred at a time when political leaders throughout the country were attacked, harassed and intimidated during a period of deep political divisions.
Panic
The leader of the Democrats in the House of Representatives, Hakim Jeffrez, condemned the attack. He said in a post on “X” that “the targeted shooting of a member of the Senate of Minnesota, John Hoffman, and the state deputy, Melissa Hortmann, is very worrying,” and continued that “violence is never acceptable.”
“We feel dismayed and very sad about an attack last night on national governmental employees,” said the Giffords Organization, the National Organization for Armed Violence led by former Congress, in a statement.
Leaders must express their opinions, and condemn violent extremism that threatens everything that this country represents. ”
Giffords had a bullet in the head in 2011 by an armed man, killing six people and wounding 12 others.
