Local reporter hit by bullet fragment during Missouri campaign event featuring Dem Lucas Kunce and Adam Kinzinger shooting guns

At a shooting range campaign event on Tuesday for US Senate candidate Lucas Kunce, a Missouri reporter was injured when a bullet fragment struck him in the arm. 

Kunce is a Democrat, running against incumbent Senator Josh Hawley, and was campaigning alongside former GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger at a private residence near Holt, Missouri. According to the Kansas City Star, the reporter was injured when a bullet fragment appeared to have ricocheted off a target. The outlet noted that Kunce, who was shooting an AR-15, was the only person shooting a firearm at the time of the injury.

The reporter was KSHB-TV’s Ryan Gamboa, who began bleeding from his arm. Kunce wrapped gauze and his belt around the reporter’s arm to help stop the bleeding. According to KSHB, Gamboa went to a local hospital to be checked out after the incident and was released, with the reporter saying his injuries were minor.

Kunce said after the incident, "Great day at the range today with my friend Adam Kinzinger. We got to hang out with some union workers while exercising our freedom. Always have your first aid kit handy. Shrapnel can always fly when you hit a target like today, and you’ve got to be ready to go. We had four first aid kits, so we were able to take care of the situation, and I’m glad Ryan is okay and was able to continue reporting."

Hawley, Kunce’s opponent, wrote on X following the incident, "When liberals play with guns, people get hurt," and added in a separate post, "I condemn all acts of violence against reporters and call on Kunce never to shoot another one."

The Missouri lawmaker quipped in another post, "My grandma is a better shot than Lucas Kunce."

Others on X expressed outrage over the incident, including Senator Eric Schmitt, who wrote, "Holy sh*t. Democrat Lucas Kunce shot a reporter. This is wrong and should be universally condemned. Hopefully Adam K[i]nzinger will speak out as well."

Hawley Comms Director Abigail Jackson wrote, "'Great day at the range we shot a reporter but otherwise all good!' What????"

"Those photos will be used in gun safety classes all over the world for the next 50 years as perfect examples of what to never do. I’ve never seen anything like it. They shot someone and then posted all the evidence of their negligence online for the world to see," wrote Federalist CEO and co-founder Sean Davis. 

"It's been a really rough month for Dems trying to appear competent with firearms," the National Association for Gun Rights wrote. 

Noting photos of the Kinzinger shooting, Robby Starbuck wrote, "Shooting a reporter will be the big story but look at Adam, he’s using a scope meant for 100-400 yards to shoot at targets only 15 ft away. Thankfully only a campaign got killed today!"