Election Day is a week away and the latest surge appears to be leaving high tensions among Palm Beach County voters.

Some of you contacted WPTV after your politically affiliated property was victimized.

“When I walked up to my car, I saw there were all these Republican signs scattered around, signs saying no to Amendment 4 and candidate signs,” Rolando Barrero said. “And then I turned around and noticed my Harris-Walz sign was missing.”

Using doorbell video, Barrero caught a woman trespassing on his property and taking his political sign from the front steps of his house.

She also left other signs for Republican candidates scattered around her yard.

He feared being targeted because of his political affiliation and his role as chair of the Florida Democratic Hispanic Caucus, and he called West Palm Beach police.

“I would prefer that people who break the law be documented so we can identify them later if harm occurs,” Barrero said.

WPBPD told WPTV they charged the woman with one count of petty theft and that she stole other non-political signs in the neighborhood.

The WPBPD said it doesn’t specifically track political calls, but said stealing political signs could be a misdemeanor or higher, depending on the quantity or value.

They said road rage, physical altercations or trespassing would be charged as such.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said it has received 49 calls related to political incidents since February. The busiest month was October with 13 calls.

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Barrero said he plans to install more security cameras around his property for safety reasons. He said WPBPD took the implicated signs as evidence and installed a new Harris-Walz sign.

Supporters of former President Trump said they also felt the heat.

“When it comes to political aggression, have you experienced any yourself?” asked WPTV reporter Joel Lopez.

“Mostly we’ve seen a lot of thumbs up and support, but we see a lot of middle fingers and a lot of people yelling at us,” Jestin Nevarez said.

He rides in a car adorned with Trump flags, stickers and other signs.

He said that last weekend, a road rage woman in Boynton Beach tried to rip the flag off her car at a red light.

“We can support whoever we want, but these people resorting to violence and tearing down our flags in the middle of traffic, that’s a problem,” Nevarez said.

According to a Reuters report, political violence in the United States is the worst since the 1970s, with 300 cases recorded since 2021.

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