TEMPE, Arizona — Police were stationed outside the Democratic Party campaign office in a quiet strip mall in suburban Phoenix on Wednesday after shots were fired at the office’s door and windows twice in the past week.
Tempe police have not yet identified any suspects or a motive, but questions are being raised as party members worry about their safety.
Political violence has already marred this year’s campaign, with former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, target of two assassination attempts — one at a campaign rally and the other on a golf course in Florida.
Recognition of repeated threats, The U.S. House of Representatives voted last week to require the U.S. Secret Service to apply the same standards when assigning agents to major presidential candidates as it does to presidents and vice presidents.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, will embark on a campaign tour of the Southwestern United States this weekend, with stops at the Arizona border on Friday and in the swing state of Nevada on Sunday.
Lindsay Bailey expected to pick up a Harris yard sign when she and her 17-year-old daughter visited the campaign office in Tempe on Wednesday. The office was empty, and the front windows were riddled with bullet holes.
“There is a great division in this country, and it is scary,” said Bailey, a 47-year-old nurse.
Tempe police are investigating the damage to the mall as a property crime. The campaign office, which was once a barbershop, is located near a daycare center and a fitness center.
In the first shooting on Sept. 16, authorities said bullets from a pellet gun or BB gun hit the office. As in the shooting reported on Sept. 23, no one was in the building at the time and there were no injuries, said Sgt. Ryan Cook, a spokesman for the Tempe Police Department.
The Tempe office is one of 18 Harris field offices in Arizona.
The current political climate is a concern for Alexis Maher, 29, who works at a nearby home improvement store.
“It makes me think that if something doesn’t go the way people want it to go, this election season is going to be pretty scary,” Maher said.
Detectives are analyzing evidence collected at the crime scene and Cook said “additional measures” were being taken to ensure the safety of staff and others in the area.
Cook said police were investigating “all possible motives.” He did not provide further details about the type of weapon used in the second shooting, or whether there might be security camera footage from either of the two nights in question.
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Gabriel Sandoval is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-reported issues.