What motivated the Minnesota lawmaker shooting suspect is unclear, so are his politics

Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., condemned the assassination of erstwhile Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her hubby arsenic politically motivated, but questions stay astir the suspect's governmental preferences. 

The Minnesota politician instantly denounced what helium said "appears to beryllium a politically motivated assassination," pursuing the attacks Saturday morning.

Vance Luther Boelter, 57, is accused of killing Hortman and her husband, Mark, and shooting authorities Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, successful abstracted incidents aboriginal Saturday morning. 

Lawmakers from Minnesota and crossed the United States person since joined Walz successful condemning the convulsive attacks. Politicians and authorities person been wide that Saturday's onslaught was politically motivated, but they person been little wide astir the suspect's governmental preferences. 

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Gov. Tim Walz speaks astatine a property league held astatine the Minnesota Emergency Management Center pursuing the apprehension of Vance Boelter. (Christopher Mark Juhn/Anadolu via Getty Images)

U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said Monday that Boelter's superior motive was "to spell retired and execution people," arsenic authorities announced the suspect's apprehension connected Monday aft a two-day manhunt. 

"Now, they were each elected officials," Thompson said. "They were each Democrats. Beyond that, I deliberation it's conscionable mode excessively speculative for anyone that has reviewed these materials to cognize and to accidental what was motivating him successful presumption of ideology oregon circumstantial issues."

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Boelter, 57, was deed with federal charges aft officials captured him successful Sibley County connected Sunday night. He is being charged with 2 counts of stalking, 2 counts of execution and 2 counts of firearm-related crimes successful national court. Boelter is besides facing second-degree execution charges, filed successful Hennepin County. 

Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman was fatally changeable connected Saturday. (Glen Stubb via Getty.)

"Political unit has nary spot successful this country," Alvin M. Winston, FBI Minneapolis Special Agent, said during a property league connected Monday. 

While Thompson said it was excessively aboriginal to place circumstantial governmental motivation, helium was wide successful saying, "This was a governmental assassination."

"It's lone the astir caller illustration of convulsive governmental extremism successful this country," Thompson added, successful airy of 2 assassination attempts connected President Donald Trump past year, the onslaught connected erstwhile House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's hubby astatine their location successful San Francisco successful 2022 and the shooting of House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., astatine the legislature shot crippled successful 2017, to sanction a few. 

Records uncover Boelter registered to ballot arsenic a Republican portion surviving successful Oklahoma successful 2004 earlier moving to Minnesota, wherever voters don’t database enactment affiliation.

Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley speaks astatine a property league held astatine the Minnesota Emergency Management Center pursuing the apprehension of Vance Boelter, the fishy successful the assassination of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her hubby and the attempted assassination of Sen. John Hoffman and his woman successful Minnesota connected June 15, 2025.  (Christopher Mark Juhn/Anadolu)

Boelter was antecedently appointed to Minnesota's Workforce Development Board by 2 governors, according to Fox 9. 

The fishy was reportedly appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, successful 2016, and past re-appointed by Walz successful 2019 arsenic a backstage assemblage typical to the council. He antecedently served connected the aforesaid committee arsenic Hoffman earlier his word expired successful 2023.

Friends and erstwhile colleagues interviewed by The Associated Press described Boelter arsenic a devout Christian who attended an evangelical religion and attended Trump rallies. 

Paul Shroeder, who has known Boelter for years, told AP, "He was right-leaning politically but ne'er fanatical, from what I saw, conscionable beardown beliefs," and added, "It seemed to beryllium conscionable that helium was a blimpish Republican who people followed Trump."

A Fox News hunt recovered nary results for idiosyncratic contributions to federally registered governmental committees. 

According to Boelter's LinkedIn page, helium has a purported extended information background, including arsenic CEO of Red Lion Group based successful the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is besides listed arsenic the manager of Praetorian Guard Security Services, a information steadfast his woman reportedly filed to create, according to the company's website. 

Several AK-style firearms were recovered from Boelter's conveyance during the investigation, on with a heap of "No Kings" flyers, reflecting anti-Trump medication protests that erupted crossed the state this weekend. 

Walz had planned to talk astatine a "No Kings" rally successful St. Paul connected Saturday earlier the assassination. 

Federal prosecutors released images they said were from Minnesota lawmaker shooting fishy Vance Boelter's notebooks successful a transgression complaint, June 16, 2025. (Department of Justice)

Authorities besides found a manifesto that listed the names and addresses of different nationalist officials. About 70 names were recovered successful the manifesto, according to 2 instrumentality enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press connected information of anonymity. Officials said the database besides included the names of pro-abortion politicians, termination rights advocates and accusation astir wellness attraction facilities.

"There were immoderate abortion-rights supporters, I believe, connected the list. But again, determination was dozens and dozens and dozens of names on, you know, hundreds of pages of documents that were recovered with his writings connected them," Thompson said. 

Boelter's roommate told The New York Post that helium had blimpish governmental views but seldom talked astir authorities and didn’t look overtly political.

"He was a Trump supporter. He voted for Trump. He liked Trump. I similar Trump," his lifelong person David Carlson said. "He didn’t similar abortion."

Carlson told The New York Times that Bolter had been experiencing fiscal and intelligence wellness challenges, and told the work that helium "just gave up connected beingness for immoderate reason."

According to The Wall Street Journal, Carlson woke up connected Saturday to a substance from Boelter that helium was "going to beryllium gone for a while" and "may beryllium dormant shortly." 

"I thought helium was going to bash self-harm," Carlson said. "I didn’t deliberation helium was going to bash thing similar this." 

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Walz continued to denounce the unit during a property league Monday. 

"A infinitesimal successful this state wherever we watched unit erupt. This cannot beryllium the norm. It cannot beryllium the mode that we woody with our governmental differences."

And Walz added successful a connection that we "cannot go numb to this violence," adding we are a "deeply divided nation."

Walz's bureau and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota did not instantly respond to Fox News Digital inquiry. 

Fox News Digital's Stephen Sorace, Michael Dorgan, Julia Bonavita, Audrey Conklin, Peter D'Abrosca and Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.