Several scholars, lawmakers, intelligence agencies, and the members of the public have expressed concerns about political violence surrounding the 2024 election.[1][2] The fears come amidst increasing threats and acts of physical violence targeting public officials and election workers at all levels of government.[3][4] Trump has been identified as a key figure in increasing political violence in America both for and against him.[5][6][7] Political violence is at its highest since the 1970s, and most recent violence has come from right-wing assailants.[8][9] Trump has increasingly embraced far-right extremism, conspiracy theories such as Q-Anon, and far-right militia movements to a greater extent than any modern American president.[10][11] Trump has espoused dehumanizing, combative, and violent rhetoric and promised retribution against his political enemies.[a] Trump has played down but refused to rule out violence following the 2024 election, stating "it depends".[18] Trump has suggested using the military against "the enemy from within" on Election Day that he described as "radical left lunatics", Democratic politicians, and those who oppose his candidacy.[19][20]
On July 13, 2024, Trump survived an assassination attempt while addressing a campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania.[21] Trump was shot and wounded on his right ear by Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old man from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania,[22][23] who fired eight rounds with an AR-15–style rifle from the roof of a building located approximately 400 feet (120 meters) from the stage; the shots killed audience member Corey Comperatore and critically injured two other audience members.[22] Seconds later, Crooks was shot and killed by the U.S. Secret Service's counter-sniper team.[24] The motive and cause of the assassination attempt are still under investigation by authorities.[25] On September 11, 2024, a bipartisan Senate report identified tech issues and other preventable mistakes by the Secret Service during the event.[26]
In late October 2024 multiple fires were reported at ballot drop boxes in Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington. The fires caused damage to hundreds of ballots, causing election officials to identify and offer new ballots to those affected by the fires. Prior to the fires the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security had issued a bulletin raising concerns about "election-related grievances" could motivate domestic extremist activity and that ballot drop boxes could be seen as "attractive targets".[30][31]
Arizona
In Phoenix, Arizona, a fire was started in a mail collection box, destroying some ballots and other mail. A suspect was arrested and claimed that he was trying to be arrested and that the fire was unrelated to the election.[32]
Threats and suspicious packages
Since the 2020 election and continuing into the 2024 election, the election denial movement in the United States has prompted thousands of death threats directed at election workers, officials, and their families, with some receiving letters laced with fentanyl.[33][34] As of March 2024, the Department of Justice's Election Threats Task Force had charged 20 people with threat-related crimes.[35] In September 2024, suspicious packages were sent to state election officials in Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, Tennessee, and Wyoming. This resulted in evacuations in several states. The inclusion of white powder in most of the packages mirrored the 2001 anthrax attacks, but the substance in the Oklahoma delivery was identified as flour.[36] Threats have led some election workers to resign and have affected recruitment of temporary poll workers.[37][38] Efforts to protect election workers are diverse, including active shooter drills, provision of trauma kits and Narcan, and the use of bullet-proof vests, bullet-resistant glass, metal detectors, various kinds of barriers, armed guards, police snipers, drones, and security cameras.[37] However, many boards of election lack the funds for such efforts.[38]
Campaign headquarters shootings
Between September and October, the Democratic Party's campaign office in Tempe, Arizona was hit by gunfire. The office was shut down on October 6, after the third shooting.[39]
^Baker, Peter (September 16, 2024). "Trump, Outrage and the Modern Era of Political Violence". The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 26, 2024. Retrieved September 28, 2024. At the heart of today's eruption of political violence is Mr. Trump, a figure who seems to inspire people to make threats or take actions both for him and against him. He has long favored the language of violence in his political discourse, encouraging supporters to beat up hecklers, threatening to shoot looters and undocumented migrants, mocking a near-fatal attack on the husband of the Democratic House speaker and suggesting that a general he deemed disloyal be executed.
^Parker, Ned; Eisler, Peter (August 9, 2023). "Political violence in polarized U.S. at its worst since 1970s". Reuters. In contrast, much of today's political violence is aimed at people – and most of the deadly outbursts tracked by Reuters have come from the right. Of the 14 fatal political attacks since the Capitol riot in which the perpetrator or suspect had a clear partisan leaning, 13 were right-wing assailants. One was on the left.
^Baker, Peter (December 1, 2022). "Trump Embraces Extremism as He Seeks to Reclaim Office". The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 16, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024. Analysts and strategists see Mr. Trump's pivot toward the far right as a tactic to re-create political momentum ... Mr. Trump has long flirted with the fringes of American society as no other modern president has, openly appealing to prejudice based on race, religion, national origin and sexual orientation, among others ... Mr. Trump's expanding embrace of extremism has left Republicans once again struggling to figure out how to distance themselves from him.
^Swenson, Ali; Kunzelman, Michael (November 18, 2023). "Fears of political violence are growing as the 2024 campaign heats up and conspiracy theories evolve". The Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024. Trump has amplified social media accounts that promote QAnon, which grew from the far-right fringes of the internet to become a fixture of mainstream Republican politics ... In his 2024 campaign, Trump has ramped up his combative rhetoric with talk of retribution against his enemies. He recently joked about the hammer attack on Paul Pelosi and suggested that retired Gen. Mark Milley, a former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, should be executed for treason.
^Layne, Nathan; Slattery, Gram; Reid, Tim (April 3, 2024). "Trump calls migrants 'animals,' intensifying focus on illegal immigration". Reuters. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024. While speaking of Laken Riley – a 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia allegedly murdered by a Venezuelan immigrant in the country illegally – Trump said some immigrants were sub-human. "The Democrats say, 'Please don't call them animals. They're humans.' I said, 'No, they're not humans, they're not humans, they're animals,'" said Trump, president from 2017 to 2021.
^Lerer, Lisa; Gold, Michael (October 15, 2024). "Trump Escalates Threats to Political Opponents He Deems the 'Enemy'". The New York Times. But never before has a presidential nominee—let alone a former president—openly suggested turning the military on American citizens simply because they oppose his candidacy. As he escalates his threats of political retribution, Mr. Trump is offering voters the choice of a very different, and far less democratic, form of American government.
^Cheatle, Kimberly (July 15, 2024). "Statement From U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle" (Press release). United States Secret Service. Archived from the original on July 15, 2024. Retrieved July 15, 2024. Secret Service personnel on the ground moved quickly during the incident, with our counter sniper team neutralizing the shooter and our agents implementing protective measures to ensure the safety of former president Donald Trump.
