She went viral when she came face-to-face with the Turning Point USA founder in May.

The young woman was widely praised for challenging Kirk, with videos of the passionate Gen Z debater amassing tens of millions of views.

According to news.com.au, Middlehurst has now found herself the target of online abuse after she reacted to Kirk’s death at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, with a tear-filled video that has angered her followers.

“Whatever you think or feel about Charlie Kirk, he has a wife, a child, and I always would want us to fight for democracy, not political violence,” she said in the clip.

“I would never advocate for such radical action against someone, even someone whose views that I condemn.”

She added: “It makes me upset that this is how politics is going, that this is how people feel that they can solve political problems, because it isn’t.”

But the young student’s video, in which she can be seen crying and is visibly emotional, has been flooded with abuse from critics of the controversial right-wing figure.

“Why are you crying OMG?” scoffed one.

“Crying over this is honestly so wild,” agreed another.

As another declared: “I didn’t expect this from you.”

In the comments section, Middlehurst defended her emotional response to Kirk’s death, telling one critic: “Politics is my life. I’m a political public figure. And I know what happens when political gun violence like this occurs. I’m a human being.”

Aside from the stream of “terrible” remarks, many more agreed with Middlehurst, describing those who “lack humanity” as “appalling”.

“This is not a conversation of left vs. right, it is a conversation of humanity vs. inhumanity,” one said.

“You did exactly what you’re supposed to do. You stood in front of him and had a respectful intelligent conversation with him. That’s how it’s supposed to be. This is awful. This is cowardly. I’m shook,” wrote another.

While one shared: “I don’t like the guy and his views but the complete lack of empathy I’m seeing in comment sections is alarming.”

“Regardless of his views, he’s a human being with a wife and children. Hatred has absolutely consumed this world and it’s sickening,” mused someone else.

Middlehurst shot to viral fame after challenging Kirk on his views on everything from feminism to immigration as well as trans rights and abortion at the Cambridge Union debating society earlier this year.

Within 24 hours of their debate, the internet was flooded with videos claiming her impressive rebuttal of Kirk’s arguments had been generated using “concealed AI software”.

So she decided to make a TikTok to set the record straight. Her take “blew up”, and catapulted her into a new social media career.

Footage of the pair has been shared hundreds, if not thousands of times, with captions often describing it as the moment Middlehurst “wrecked” Kirk, a notoriously confident and difficult to challenge debater.

Other videos shared on YouTube credit the 20-year-old as “destroying” the young father, while one even claimed she “cooked” him.

Kirk, who was conducting a Q&A session at a pop-up tent on the college campus when he was shot in the neck, was part of a growing “Debate Me” bros movement and an outspoken MAGA supporter who is widely credited with helping President Donald Trump win the youth vote.

Kirk, a father of two, was rushed to hospital in a “critical” condition following the shooting.

The gunman reportedly fired the shot from the university’s Losee Center with a long gun around 200 feet away (over 60 metres), from where he was speaking, the New York Post reports, citing sources.

Police earlier said a suspect was taken in custody.

However, a university spokesperson said the individual taken into custody has since been released, CBS reports.

Three sources told the outlet the suspect is still at large.

Lancaster Girls’ Grammar School have been approached for comment.