The Secret Service killed the shooter, whose identity wasn’t known till Saturday night, eastern time. One other participant at the rally died, and two were critically injured.

The incident, reportedly being investigated as “attempted assassination”, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) taking the lead, left the country in shock. President Joe Biden condemned the attack as “sick” and said there was no space for political violence.

Trump was speaking to supporters in Butler county in the swing state two days before the Republican National Convention is set to nominate him as the party’s presidential candidate. Live footage captured a series of shots; Trump appeared to hear the shots and ducked under the podium and took cover. Within seconds, US Secret Service (USSS) agents covered Trump even as shots continued. The agents then helped Trump up. He raised his fist into the air, with the American flag in the background, and gave a determined look to the crowd. As Trump was being escorted out, his ear appeared to be bleeding, and there was blood on his face.

In a statement, Trump thanked USSS and law enforcement for their “rapid response”. “It is incredible that such an act can take place in our country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead. I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear. I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realised then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”

Also Read: List of assassinations and attempts on former US presidents throughout history

Biden, who is also Trump’s key rival in the presidential poll as the presumptive Democratic nominee, was briefed on the situation soon after. Biden said in a statement that he was grateful that Trump was safe and doing well. “There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it”.

Later, Biden told reporters, “It’s sick. It’s sick. It’s one of the reasons why we have to unite this country. We cannot allow this to happen. We cannot be like this. We cannot condone this.” He said that the bottom line was Trump was at a rally he should have been allowed to conduct peacefully, and this was the kind of political violence that was “unheard of” in America. Asked if this was an assassination attempt, Biden said he didn’t know enough, and while he had an opinion, he didn’t have facts.

Biden also spoke to Trump. Later in the evening, American media outlets quoted law enforcement officials as saying that the incident was being investigated as an “attempted assassination”.

In a statement, the Secret Service said that at approximately 6.15 pm on Thursday evening, “a suspected shooter fired multiple shots toward the stage from an elevated position outside of the rally venue”. Secret Service personnel then “neutralized the shooter, who is now deceased”. The statement added that USSS had “quickly responded with protective measures” and that Trump was safe. Later, the FBI said that it had assumed the role of the lead federal law enforcement agency in the investigation of the “incident” involving Trump.

The shooting, of which limited details are publicly available so far in terms of the identity and motivation of the perpetrator or even the extent of Trump’s injuries, is sure to affect the political landscape four months before the presidential election, where Trump is leading in polls. The Republican Party announced it was going ahead with the convention in Milwaukee on Monday; Trump will officially be nominated as the party’s candidate on Thursday.

Trump is attempting a rare return to the White House for a non-consecutive term. He did not accept the legitimacy of the 2020 election, which was followed by a mob attacking the US Capitol to block the certification of the results in a display of political violence. Trump is also a convicted felon who also faces multiple criminal charges that he rejects.

But he swept the Republican primaries and is running a campaign against the Biden administration’s approach to immigration (while promising to deport all illegal immigrants), economy and foreign policy. Biden, whose age-related vulnerabilities came to sharp focus during a debate on June 27, is facing a huge internal backlash within the Democratic Party with growing calls that he drop out of the race. Recent polls have shown Trump increasing his lead over Biden, including in critical swing states.

It is too early to tell how the shooting will affect US politics. But what’s clear is that it may be a defining moment in an already unprecedented election and brings political violence centre-stage in the world’s oldest democracy. Despite a gun epidemic in the US and mass shootings being a key reason for killings every year, political violence targeted at top national figures has dropped in recent decades, after a particularly violent period in the 1960s that saw the assassination of John F Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr and Bob Kennedy.