Raleigh city council candidate Zainab Baloch’s campaign sign was found vandalized Friday morning with a racial slur, the word "Trump" and a swastika.
The sign, placed at the site of a future mosque in North Raleigh, was vandalized just days before polls opened.
Baloch, a Muslim woman, is currently working toward a Master of Public Administration at UNC while she runs for office in Raleigh, where she grew up.
She said hate was somewhat expected, but the expectation did not lessen the vandalized sign's effect.
“It was disheartening and hurtful,” Baloch said. “Then it went to being angry and frustrated, to then being completely motivated with my team — this is exactly why we decided to run.”
Mohamed ElGamal, chairperson at the Islamic Association of Raleigh, said things in North Carolina are not as bad as many people would think, but there is still work to be done.
“There are very few people who are really hateful, and it’s unfortunate to have this kind of minority, but the majority are really good people and understanding,” he said.
Baloch said she hopes to foster a dialogue about the racial and religious tensions surrounding her campaign.
"The love and outpouring of support we got after this was amazing, and it is what kept us going — but we can’t forget that we need to have this discussion, that people really do feel this way,” she said.
