Colorado school board candidate campaign signs vandalized with Nazi symbol throughout the community

Some residents in the Elizabeth community are concerned about the sight they saw on their drive through town last week.  

"It's evil period," said Micha Nemmers, an Elizabeth resident.

"Really just disappointment, that is not a reflection of this community," said Nicole Hunt.

School board campaign posters throughout the town were vandalized with swastikas. The Nazi symbol was drawn over the names of three conservative school board candidates currently running for re-election: Nicole Hunt, David Fletcher, and Mary Powell.

"Our signs do say conservatives for kids, so that conveys a message which means we are and we're very proudly advocating for parental rights, for transparency [and] for good government," said Hunt.

"It was just a shock to the system that such hate would be visible in our community," said Mary Powell.

The three candidates tell CBS Colorado someone vandalized eight campaign signs since September 16, one of which they say was even stolen from a homeowner's private residence.

"It's actually in the middle of a field where there's a barbed wire fence that's been up. In fact, the folks who tagged it must've cut through the barbed wire to get to it because the barbed wire was cut. There's cattle in there that graze, so we're really grateful there was no accident," said Hunt.

Yet, in the wake of recent political violence in the country, people like Fletcher say what happened in his town did not come as a shock.

"So close on the heels of Charlie Kirk getting shot and assassinated, this was to be expected," said Fletcher.

A disappointing sight, it quickly turned into acts of kindness from the rest of the Elizabeth community, as some rallied behind the candidates to clean off the vandalized signs.

"There really was a surge of support from the community," said Hunt.

The Elbert and Douglas County Sheriff's offices are investigating the vandalism.

The Elbert County Board of Commissioners also shared a statement in response to the vandalism:

"We are alarmed by the recent vandalism of political signage in Elbert County. These criminal acts are inconsistent with our county's values, especially now when we are working to unite on common issues such as managed growth, a thriving economy, safe roads, and our rural identity. We recognize that political disagreements – often triggered by hostile, online debate – are part of the political process, and that as Americans we have the First Amendment right to express our views. This right does not, however, include the right to vandalize political signs."  

While they still don't know who or how many people planned the vandalism on their signs, these candidates say they're keeping them up to send a message that hate doesn't solve political differences.

"More than ever, we need to be having conversations. There's something you disagree with that we've done, let's talk about it," said Hunt. "Let's talk about what the direction is for the school board, but let's not dehumanize people because that often leads to physical violence."