At least five trees outside the Taft Community Center, an early voting site on South Orange Avenue in Orlando, were painted with a series of swastikas, according to the Orange County elections supervisor. The discovery prompted an immediate response from county election officials and the Orange County Sheriff's Office, which is investigating the incident, as the site continues to serve voters during the final stretch of early voting.
The swastikas were found outside the Taft Community Center, according to fox35orlando.com, which first reported the hate symbols near the polling location. The WESH report places the address at 9450 S. Orange Ave. in Orlando, where the trees line the grounds of the community center used as one of the county's early voting hubs.
Orange County Supervisor of Elections Karen Castor Dentel did not mince words in response. She said the symbols represent a history of hatred, antisemitism, and violence, and that their presence in the community is disturbing and unacceptable. Castor Dentel added that hatred has no place in the community or in elections, according to the elections office.
Sheriff's Office Opens Investigation as Symbols Are Removed
The Orange County Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident, the station's report notes. The elections office said it worked with Orange County government and other officials to have the symbols removed as quickly as possible, and that the supervisor condemned the display while coordinating with county government and local leaders on the cleanup.
Despite the vandalism, the Taft Community Center will remain open along with the county's other early voting sites, per the same account. Orange County operates 27 early voting locations, all open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day, with early voting continuing through Nov. 1 ahead of Election Day on Nov. 3.
What Florida Law Says About Voter Intimidation
Voter intimidation is unlawful under both Florida and federal law, which protect the right to vote free from threats, coercion, and intimidation. Florida's Election Code includes a specific provision titled Voter intimidation or suppression prohibited; criminal penalties, according to the Florida Legislature, Online Sunshine.
Under that statute, using bribery, menace, threat, or other corruption to influence, deceive, or deter — or to attempt to influence, deceive, or deter — someone in the free exercise of the right to register to vote is classified as a third-degree felony, according to the Florida Legislature, Online Sunshine. The Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office said it takes voter protections seriously and remains committed to upholding them, per the elections office's release.
Similar incidents tied to the symbolism of hate near the election cycle have drawn scrutiny elsewhere. JNS reported that police were investigating a Nazi swastika found on a Jewish New York candidate's campaign sign as a possible hate crime, underscoring how such symbols have surfaced in political contexts beyond Orange County.
