In an unfolding story out of Minnesota, a Democratic state representative and her husband were shot and killed, while a second state lawmaker and his wife were also shot. Though details are still being determined and the shooter or shooters are still at large, authorities are labeling the attacks as political.

Two lawmakers and their spouses shot by suspect impersonating police officer

WWNY 7 News Minneapolis reports that Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were fatally shot at their home in Brooklyn Park, a suburb of Minneapolis. A second state representative, John Hoffman, and his wife Yvette were shot at their home in the Champlin suburb. Each of the four victims was shot multiple times. The Hoffmans have undergone surgery for their injuries and are suspected to survive.

Sources report that in both Saturday morning shootings, the gunman impersonated a police officer. Police initially responded to a call of a shooting at the Hoffman home around 2 a.m. Saturday morning, at which point they found an SUV with lights installed to appear as if it was a squad car, and a suspect dressed as an officer. Police exchanged gunfire with the suspect, who remains at large. A hunt is currently being conducted for the man, described as “a white man with brown hair wearing black body armor over a blue shirt and blue pants.” The suspect reportedly left behind a manifesto in his vehicle, suggesting the shootings were political in nature.

Governor Walz remembers Hortman, calls out ‘political violence’ as manhunt continues

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced the Hortmans’ death in a press conference Saturday morning. Walz characterized the killings of the Hortmans as a “politically motivated assassination” and described the shootings of the two couples as “targeted political violence.” Both Hortman and Hoffman are members of the Democratic Farmer Labor Party, the local affiliate of the national Democratic Party. Hortman previously served as speaker of the Minnesota House. Walz remembered Hortman as “a formidable public servant, a fixture and a giant in Minnesota. She woke up every day determined to make this state a better place.”

The shoots come hours before some residents were prepared to take place in protest as part of the nationwide “No Kings” demonstrations happening across the United States. The No Kings protest for Northeast Minneapolis as been cancelled due to a shelter-in-place order being issued while the hunt continues for the gunman, though events in other parts of the city are scheduled to continue. While the exact motivation for the shootings has not yet been revealed, they come at a time of heightened political tensions, illustrated by escalating confrontations between federal authorities and protestors in cities such as Los Angeles and the detention of Democratic Senator Alex Padilla by federal agents during an LA press conference earlier this week.

The exact motivations behind Saturday’s attacks have yet to be sorted out. For now, the focus in Minneapolis remains apprehending the gunman who remains at large and mourning the loss of Speaker Hortman and her husband.