BocaNews.com - Election violence surfaces in South Florida

Published Tuesday, October 26, 2004

by Sean Salai

Election-related violence is on the rise this week in South Florida as impassioned Republicans and Democrats duke it out at rallies and the polls.

Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans and Independents in Palm Beach County, where voters last week began casting early ballots for the Nov. 2 general election, and strained feelings are already leading to hostility. In Boca Raton this weekend, county Republicans filled out police reports for shattered car windows at a Friday rally and a vandalism incident Sunday night at their headquarters.

"I've never seen anything like it," Jenni Garrison, executive director of the Republican Party of Palm Beach County, said yesterday. "This is our first presidential election since 2000 and people are already nervous and scared about using the new machines. This contentiousness just adds to their anxiety."

Garrison said the nastiness is also evident from Republican volunteers, adding that she hopes both parties will crack down on it.

"I've already removed people from polling places for behaving inappropriately and antagonizing Democratic voters," Garrison said. "We've also removed inappropriate signs. We're not out there to harass the voters and behave like four-year olds. We�re there to support our president."

Sunday's incident occurred at the GOP's Boca headquarters on North Federal Highway between 7 and 11 p.m. The unknown perpetrator tampered with the deadbolt on the office door, locking party workers out of the office when they discovered that their keys no longer worked.

"The brown shirts have arrived and they're all Democrats," said Sid Dinerstein, county GOP chairman.

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