2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting

hotel, seen here in 2010.|left The White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) holds an annual dinner in Washington, D.C., traditionally attended by the sitting president, members of the press, and other dignitaries. The 2026 dinner, held at the Washington Hilton, was the first such event attended by Trump during his presidencies; he had declined to attend during his first term and in 2025. The 2026 dinner featured mentalist Oz Pearlman as the celebrity performer. The event attracted approximately 2,600 attendees, including senior administration officials such as Vice President Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, However, the highest security level was not invoked for the event. The Associated Press noted that the lobby of the Washington Hilton regularly remains open to other guests during the dinner, and that security and screening is typically located closer to the ballroom itself. The Associated Press noted Trump's contentious relationship with journalists; before the dinner, five hundred journalists had signed a petition urging the WHCA to oppose Trump's "efforts to trample freedom of the press". For her part, WHCA president Weijia Jiang said, "I don't think people realize how closely we are working with the White House". Among the protesters outside the event, one held a sign saying, "Journalism is dead." White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that a discussion about the line of succession took place before the dinner but that there were several members of the Cabinet not in attendance, so no specific designated survivor was needed. ==Incident==

Shooting footage of the suspect running past the secure area near the ballroom at 8:36 p.m. At 8:30 p.m., the suspect sent his manifesto, a text file titled "Apology and Explanation", to family members via email. At 8:36 p.m., while dinner was being served inside the main ballroom, the suspect ran past a security checkpoint and authorities believe he fired at least one shot. Investigators alleged that the suspect was running at at least 9 miles per hour while he was chased and apprehended, after he tripped and fell to the ground after hitting his knee on a magnetometer box. Several US Secret Service agents yelled "shots fired" inside the venue, according to pool reports. CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer, who was outside the main ballroom at the time, reported being only a few feet away from the gunman when the shots were fired. Blitzer described the shooter as firing what appeared to be "a very serious weapon" at least six times before being tackled and taken to the ground by police. Blitzer was ushered to safety in a nearby restroom by officers. One law enforcement officer was struck in his bullet-resistant vest and was admitted to a hospital but has was later released. The New York Times reported evidence suggesting that the suspect did not fire that round. Prosecutors later disputed this, affirming that the suspect shot the officer. The gunman sustained a single knee injury from the tackle, for which he was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. Evacuation Trump, who had been seated at the head table on the stage as Oz Pearlman performed for him, his wife, and Karoline Leavitt, was surrounded by Secret Service agents about ten seconds after the shots were fired. Once armed guards in tactical gear with rifles appeared on the dais and some other attendees, including Vance, had been evacuated, Trump was escorted off the stage, briefly falling in the process. Many of the roughly 2,600 attendees took cover under their tables. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino unsuccessfully attempted to start a "U-S-A!" chant as Trump was escorted out and others began filming inside the ballroom. First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President Vance, White House press secretary Leavitt, and other cabinet members were also evacuated from the ballroom and moved to secure holding areas within the hotel. Several members of Congress were seen departing the event on foot, including Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Representative Jared Moskowitz (D-FL). Among the attendees, Charlie Kirk's widow, Erika, was escorted away in tears. == Accused ==

A suspect was arrested near the screening area outside of the banquet hall. The suspect was carrying a Maverick 12-gauge shotgun, an Armscor Precision .38 semiautomatic pistol, a Ka-Bar knife and three Smith & Wesson boot knives. Interim Washington, D.C., police chief Jeffery Carroll said the suspect was taken to the hospital for a single knee injury despite not being hit by gunfire and that investigators believe he was staying at the hotel as a guest. Trump posted images on Truth Social of Allen after his arrest, lying face down on the ground shirtless, with his hands cuffed behind his back, and surrounded by Secret Service agents. Allen was homeschooled throughout high school, however he played volleyball at Pacific Lutheran High School via a special program his junior year. He graduated from the California Institute of Technology in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He obtained a Master of Science degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills in May 2025. According to law enforcement, Allen worked for C2 Education, a tutoring firm in Torrance and received a "Teacher of the Month" award from the company in December 2024. According to Federal Election Commission records, Allen donated $25 to a Democratic Party PAC, ActBlue, for Kamala Harris's presidential campaign in October 2024. Prior to the shooting, Allen lived with his parents, along with his two sisters and one brother. Family members were interviewed by investigators and Secret Service agents said that Allen "made radical statements and that he constantly referenced a plan to do 'something' to fix the issues with today's world", that he was part of a Connecticut-based group called "The Wide Awakes" based in Hartford, attended No Kings protests in California, and would regularly go to a shooting range to train with firearms. Allen's sister told Secret Service agents and the Montgomery County Police Department that Allen had purchased two handguns and a shotgun, which he stored at their parents' home without their knowledge. Allen's brother notified the New London Police Department about the alleged manifesto that he sent to his family members. New London police chief Brian Wright released a statement the following afternoon, confirming that the "individual wanted to share information they believed to be pertinent to the matter". The official characterized the writing as displaying anti-Trump sentiment and describes his targets as administration officials, and not guests or hotel employees. According to the official, Allen apologized to family and friends in his writing, and said that he does not expect forgiveness. New London police immediately turned their case over to federal law enforcement afterward. After the incident, FBI agents and the Torrance Police Department swarmed through Allen's house, using tactical gear and armored vehicles. Acting US attorney general Todd Blanche said that Allen boarded Amtrak on April 21 and took two of their routes, the Southwest Chief from Los Angeles to Chicago and the Floridian from Chicago to Washington, before checking in as a guest at the hotel on April 24. A manifesto, purported to be the suspect's, read in part: The manifesto does not name Trump, but lists among its grievances the federal government's strikes on what it claimed were drug boats in the Pacific early in 2026. == Legal proceedings ==

, D.C. attorney general Jeanine Pirro, and FBI director Kash Patel announce that they are charging Allen with attempting to assassinate Trump on April 27. On April 27, the US Department of Justice held a news conference to announce that Allen was being charged with the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump, transportation of a firearm and ammunition through interstate commerce with intent to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. On May 5, Allen was officially indicted on 4 total charges, which included attempting to assassinate the president. ==Aftermath==

holding a meeting inside the Oval Office with cabinet members, soon after the shooting Shortly after 9:00 p.m. EDT, WHCA president Weijia Jiang addressed the ballroom from the stage, announcing that the program would continue momentarily. At approximately 9:20 p.m. EDT, security personnel began clearing out the ballroom, effectively canceling the event for the evening. Jiang later announced from the stage that Trump planned to give a briefing from the White House and that the dinner would be rescheduled within 30 days. The day after the shooting, the Department of Justice announced that "preliminary findings" suggested Trump was the intended target. Other media galas planned for the same night in Washington, D.C., continued unabated including events associated with Substack, MS NOW, and Time. Oz Pearlman, who had been entertaining Trump at the Correspondents' Dinner in the moments before the shooting, arrived at the MS NOW event feeling "shook up" but glad that the parties were going on. King Charles III and Queen Camilla made a state visit to the United States from April 27 to 30, meeting both Donald Trump and the First Lady. After the shooting, Buckingham Palace announced that the state visit would go ahead as planned, but that the shooting incident resulted in increased security, though specifics have not been announced. Charles referenced the attack during his address to Congress, stating that "such acts of violence will never succeed." == Responses ==

Federal Shortly after the incident, Trump posted on Truth Social: "Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job. They acted quickly and bravely. The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we 'LET THE SHOW GO ON' but will entirely be guided by Law Enforcement." In a subsequent post, Trump wrote that law enforcement had requested all attendees leave and confirmed that the first lady, vice president, and all Cabinet members were "in perfect condition." He also stated the event would be rescheduled within 30 days and later held a press conference from the White House Briefing Room. During the briefing that evening, Trump said the venue "was not a particularly secure building" and used it as support for the existence of the White House Ballroom. He also doubted any connection of the shooter with the 2026 Iran war and said it would not stop him from "winning the war in Iran". Former president Barack Obama condemned the assassination attempt against President Trump. On April 27, Donald and Melania Trump both accused talk show host Jimmy Kimmel of inciting violence against them and of strengthening the political rift within America; they both called for him to be fired from ABC immediately. Three days before the shooting, Kimmel made a joke on his show while pretending to be the host of the upcoming White House Correspondents' Dinner, stating "Our first lady Melania is here...So beautiful, Mrs Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow." Kimmel responded to the accusations, stating that the joke was made days before the incident and that it has been based around their age difference and Melania's poker face during most events and reiterated that he was against any form of gun violence. On April 28, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that it is accelerating the review of eight local broadcasting licenses used by ABC. On April 30, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said the order was not related to Trump’s call for Kimmel to be fired. US Secret Service The US Secret Service issued an official statement confirming an investigation had begun and that all protectees were safe: "The U.S. Secret Service, in coordination with the Metropolitan Police Department, is investigating a shooting incident near the main magnetometer screening area at the White House Correspondents' dinner. The president and first lady are safe along [with] all protectees." A former Pacific Lutheran High School volleyball teammate from Gardena spoke to KNBC-TV that Allen attended Pacific Lutheran for all four years and was part of the school's volleyball team, describing him as "inquisitiveness and intellect", a “borderline genius” and “super stable”. Neighbors who spoke to the Los Angeles Times said that Allen had just moved to the Old Torrance area six months prior to the attack. The condemnation from Ukraine was made by Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, and not President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This has been interpreted as a sign of the Ukrainian president's growing frustration with the U.S. approach to the Russia-Ukraine war under Trump's presidency. ==Analysis==

El Paíss correspondent Iker Seisdedos characterized the shooting as "another sign of the increasingly tense atmosphere in the United States". Seisdedos placed the incident in the context of recent political violence in the United States, citing attacks or plots targeting figures including Steve Scalise, Gretchen Whitmer, Brett Kavanaugh, Paul Pelosi, and Charlie Kirk. David Smith, the Washington bureau chief for The Guardian, wrote that the incident reflected the prevalence of political violence in the United States and noted that Trump himself had been criticized in the past for violent suggestions, such as purging the US of crime on "one really violent day". After the shooting, Aaron Blake of CNN wrote about an emerging split reality in the US, explaining how the reaction to recent acts of political violence reflected increasingly warped views of the perpetrators from people from both the left and the right, as well as how both sides were overwhelmingly likely to blame the other for those acts. ==Misinformation and conspiracy theories==

Media and fact checkers reported that conspiracy theories and unsupported claims rapidly circulated following the shooting at the Correspondents' Dinner. This surge of conspiracy theories was described and commented on by national and international media, often attributing it to distrust in the institutions (the government, the media themselves) and mutual distrust by both sides of the political spectrum. Donie O'Sullivan discussed how prominent former Trump's supporters like Tucker Carlson and Marjorie Taylor Greene have recently questioned the official narrative on the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Pennsylvania, and quotes Keith Olbermann and Cenk Uygur blaming Trump's and his administration's mendacity for their own mistrust of their statements. NBC News described and analyzed the fast spread of misinformation, stating that "Conspiracy theories and a knee-jerk skepticism of current events have become the default response for a growing number of Americans, deepened by the loss of trust in institutions and supercharged by starkly partisan politics." White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called the conspiracy theories "crazy nonsense"; Trump called them "sick". "Staged" allegations One of the main reported false narratives was claims that the entire event was faked for political gain. On Bluesky, many users posted "STAGED", echoing the response to the Trump assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024, whereas on X, others claimed that the shooting was staged to increase support for Trump's plan to build a new ballroom in the White House. Other reasons given for staging the shooting were Trump's low approval ratings, and his actions in the 2026 Iran war. Comments from Leavitt and her husband Nicholas Riccio in particular were seen as them having prior knowledge of the shooting: Leavitt told Fox News shortly before "There will be some shots fired tonight in the room" in apparent reference to a planned speech of Trump. Snopes notes that in English "[t]he phrase 'shots fired' is a common figure of speech that refers to someone making jokes or jabs at another person. There was no evidence that Leavitt's comment referenced the shooting before it happened." Fox correspondent Aishah Hasnie reported that Riccio emphasized she "need[ed] to be very safe" at the event; while recounting this to the network, Hasnie's call cut out, causing speculation that Fox News was suppressing her account. Hasnie cited poor cell reception for the call dropping and clarified: "To finish the story, he was telling me to be careful with my own safety because the world is crazy." Social media users claimed that a picture allegedly showing Trump standing behind a curtain observing the commotion at the ballroom proved that the shooting had been staged; that claim was shared in posts that reached millions of users of Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, and X. Snopes reported that even if the photo is authentic, the man in it is not Trump. False information about the suspect An X user named True Promise claimed that information gleaned from Google Trends indicated that the suspect's name had been searched hundreds of times in Israel a day before the incident. According to the Free Press Journal, this idea was debunked. Another widely spread social media post asserted that he had been seen wearing a sweatshirt associated with the Israel Defense Force, but this claim could not be independently confirmed. A viral image of a passport belonging to an Indian woman, who was supposedly married to the suspect, was in fact an AI-generated forgery. ==See also==