A campaign sign supporting Maryland Democratic Senate candidate Angela Alsobrooks was defaced with racist threats, triggering a police investigation, The Washington Post reported Monday night.
"The defaced sign, which sits on a grassy median near a busy six-lane road in Prince George’s County, where Alsobrooks is county executive, had two additions in black ink: the letters 'KKK' near her hands and crosshairs drawn on her forehead," reported Lateshia Beachum and Erin Cox. "Prince George’s County Police Department public information officer Brian Fischer said on Monday that police are investigating the incident."
Alsobrooks, who is Black, won the nomination to replace outgoing Maryland Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin in a hotly contested primary with Congressman David Trone.
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A spokesperson for Alsobrooks said the incident will not stop her: “Our paramount concern is Angela’s safety. However, this sort of hateful threat will not deter Angela or her campaign.”
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Meanwhile, Alsobrooks' Republican opponent, former Gov. Larry Hogan, also put out a response on X: “Hate, threats of violence, and racism must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. They have no place in Maryland.”
Hogan served two terms as a relatively popular governor in Maryland; however, recent polling has shown Democrats with an advantage in a state that is essentially guaranteed to back President Joe Biden by a wide margin.
The vandalism and destruction of yard signs is a common crime in the lead-up to an election.
It is often committed by political opponents of the candidate who want to destroy or obscure signs of support. In some cases, more peculiar motivations turn out to be behind it. In 2020, a Florida man was arrested for destroying Trump yard signs; the suspect turned out to be a Trump supporter, who was upset that the signs were displayed next to Confederate battle flags and didn't want passersby to associate Trump support with racism.