海角大神

Early this year, Illinois state Rep. Nicole La Ha introduced a bill to help state lawmakers keep their home addresses private in the face of rising threats. She had no idea how quickly she鈥檇 be in need of such legislation.

A local man was arrested聽last month after allegedly making threats to kill her and harm her family. It was the third time the Republican lawmaker had received threats of violence since taking office less than two years ago.

Speaking on the phone Monday afternoon, as additional security measures were being installed in her home, Ms. La Ha says she鈥檚 鈥渟till trying to figure out what this means for me.鈥� She used to bring her two children with her to political events, but has pulled back on that in recent weeks.

Her experience is an increasingly common one for state lawmakers across America.

The murders in Minnesota of former Democratic state House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband and attempted murders of Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife this past weekend are the latest acts in a wave of political violence that has touched elected officials from the president on down to local politicians in both parties.

President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt last July; another apparent attempt was thwarted in September. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro鈥檚 home was attacked in April by an arsonist. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi鈥檚 husband was brutally attacked in their home in 2022.

The officials targeted in those events were all national figures and had security details. Local officeholders, on the other hand, have far less protection afforded to them 鈥� and, as the weekend鈥檚 shootings made clear, are increasingly vulnerable in the current environment. Many are now grappling with how to stay safe while doing a job that necessitates interacting with the public.

鈥淧eople want to point to Trump or Democrats, but we are all in this,鈥� says former Minnesota state Sen. Paul Gazelka, a Republican, who served as the Senate majority leader during Ms. Hortman鈥檚 tenure as the Democratic House speaker. 鈥淲e鈥檙e in a bad place.鈥�

Mr. Gazelka and Ms. Hortman led Minnesota鈥檚 legislature together through the pandemic, the murder of George Floyd, and the riots that followed 鈥� a time when, Mr. Gazelka says, anger and frustration in America really began ramping up. Although they were leaders of opposing parties, Mr. Gazelka says they became friends, and he confided in her about the death threats he received. The two had texted about the end of the legislative session in May.

鈥淪he rarely lost her cool,鈥� says Mr. Gazelka, who recalls Ms. Hortman as thoughtful, honest, and empathetic.

Death threats against politicians of all stripes have been on the rise for some time now. According to the U.S. Capitol Police, the number of violent threats against members of Congress reached an all-time high last year, for the second year in a row. Local election administrators and officials, many of them nonpartisan, have faced a skyrocketing number of threats since the 2020 elections, as have federal judges.

The increase in political violence comes even as violent crime overall has dropped dramatically. Over the past three decades, violent crime overall is down by nearly half and murder is down by one-third, according to FBI data.

Technology as a driver of risk

Carol Rollie Flynn, a former executive director of the Central Intelligence Agency鈥檚 (CIA) Counterterrorism Center, who has long studied political terrorism, says that the increasingly polarized and vitriolic political environment 鈥� driven by social media 鈥� has been an obvious contributor.

Technology hasn鈥檛 just helped radicalize people 鈥� it鈥檚 also made it easier to execute attacks, with bomb-making and attack plans just a few clicks away and the location of public figures easier to find. Ms. Flynn now runs a private risk analysis consulting firm that helps high-level executives keep their information and whereabouts private online. That鈥檚 not so feasible for politicians, who need to be out there making themselves available and meeting constituents.

鈥淚f one of my close relatives were a state legislator or a small town mayor, I鈥檇 say, 鈥楤e careful,鈥欌�� she says. At a minimum, she recommends they have metal detectors at events, hide their home addresses, and scrub their social media as much as possible.

Ms. La Ha, who won the 2022 Mrs. America beauty pageant, is accustomed to being in the spotlight. But she wasn鈥檛 prepared for how vitriolic state politics would be when she assumed her legislative seat in late 2023. She鈥檚 stopped using her married name in public, she says, to give her children some anonymity and protection.

One of the first people to reach out to her after her family was threatened was fellow state Rep. Bob Morgan. The Democrat had been at the Fourth of July Parade in Highland Park in 2022 when a man opened fire on the crowd, killing seven and wounding 48.

In the wake of that tragedy, he introduced legislation to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines in Illinois. His work on that bill, which became law in early 2023, provoked 鈥渁 significant number of direct death threats, both on social media, but also to my home.鈥�

鈥淚 continue to get threats,鈥� Mr. Morgan says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 unfortunately just a very ever-present part of my job.鈥�

He鈥檚 implemented a variety of home security protections and works closely with local law enforcement. He now alerts police and hires private security for some public events. But he recognizes that these precautions can only do so much. 鈥淲e鈥檙e now getting to a place where there鈥檚 not a real protocol or a step that you can add that would have prevented this, and that鈥檚 pretty frightening.鈥�

Actions to enhance privacy

Mr. Morgan and Ms. La Ha reconnected Monday morning and discussed reviving her legislation in a bipartisan fashion. Currently, state elected officials have to include their home addresses on their ballot petition forms in order to prove they reside in the community they鈥檙e running to represent. Ms. La Ha鈥檚 bill to change that is modeled after similar efforts to help judges shield their home addresses from public view 鈥� a move that鈥檚 become necessary as judges have increasingly become targets in recent years.

Across the country, state officials are looking at similar measures and other ways to boost security.

On Monday, Minnesota鈥檚 campaign finance regulator removed from its website information on street addresses for candidates in response to requests from legislators. Colorado鈥檚 secretary of state temporarily took down its campaign finance database out of concern that it contained personal information about candidates. And the North Dakota Legislative Council removed legislators鈥� home addresses from their biography pages.

Still, hiding one鈥檚 home address is difficult at best. A notebook found by authorities in the alleged Minnesota shooter鈥檚 car contained lists of commonly used internet search engines for personal information.

In Ohio, Democratic state Sen. Casey Weinstein says there鈥檚 increased security at the state capitol and that the Ohio State Highway Patrol has boosted patrols around legislators鈥� homes. 鈥淚t definitely makes me feel grateful that we鈥檙e all getting that little extra protection right now,鈥� he says.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine confirmed in a text that his administration had 鈥渢aken additional measures鈥� to protect lawmakers since the tragedy in Minnesota, while declining to discuss details for security reasons. Asked if he鈥檇 ever seen a period in his half-century in office where local elected officials had to worry for their safety like today, he simply responded: 鈥渘o.鈥�

鈥淒emocracy and Donuts,鈥� undeterred

Mr. Weinstein has frequently used his own home in Hudson, Ohio, for political events, with flyers prominently displaying his address. To him, it signals accessibility 鈥� and trust. Supporters come to his house, where he lives with his wife and three young children, to pick up yard signs or attend petition-signing events.

This Saturday, he鈥檚 been planning to host a 鈥淒emocracy and Donuts Drive-Thru.鈥� It鈥檚 a convenient location for both his constituents and for him. Like so many other state legislators, Mr. Weinstein works a full-time job in the private sector in addition to his public service.

There have been times during his 10 years in office that he鈥檚 considered hiding his address, or stepping away from public service altogether. He thought about it in 2022, when more than two dozen men protested in trucks outside his home. He thought about it again when he heard about what happened in Minnesota.

鈥淲e usually fly below the radar,鈥� says Mr. Weinstein, speaking of state legislators. 鈥淚t raised an alarm, and an awareness for me about the environment we鈥檙e operating in.鈥�

Nonetheless, Mr. Weinstein posted on his Facebook page Monday that this weekend鈥檚 event would take place in his driveway as planned. He doesn鈥檛 want extremists to ruin the relationship he鈥檚 built with constituents 鈥� and he wants to continue encouraging young aspiring lawmakers with families to run for office. But he鈥檚 making a few changes, too: Saturday鈥檚 driveway event will be the first one with hired security.