Footage of a Donald Trump supporter has gone viral, with calls for the “violent man” to be arrested for his aggressive behavior at an early voting polling place.
The video, shared by Alex Cole on X, shows a man wearing a MAGA hat getting involved in a tussle with multiple polling officers. It’s not known what caused the altercation, but things heat up when the man hurls profanities, including the B-word, at one of the female poll staff members. After calmly telling the man not to “cuss at me,” the polling officer is told by the man to “shut the hell up and let me vote.”
From there, things spiral quite rapidly. After refusing to offer service to the man, he proceeds to throw his MAGA hat at the voters queuing behind him, though it unfortunately didn’t land in the bin where it belongs. The person recording the video is heard repeating “wow” in disbelief, as the man goes from low to even lower and steps toward another polling officer.
The woman reflexively defends herself with her hands, and the male voter needs to be held back as he continues to menacingly approach her. Bystanders get involved to create distance between the pair, with one polling officer repeatedly telling the man “you are wrong!”. The man is told to go outside as the tension escalates, with the situation only subsiding mildly before the video ends.
Naturally, the video prompted equal parts rage and shock from viewers, who flocked to the replies to share their thoughts. Many shared the sentiment that the voter’s behavior was encouraged by Trump, who has “granted permission” to his supporters to “openly display racist, misogynistic behavior towards women of color.” Other users agreed, saying MAGA voters feel “empowered by Trump” to behave in such a way and that they “take after their leader.”
Another viewer said the situation is par for the course, since “anger issues are common among Trumpers.” Elsewhere, viewers called for the man to receive some form of punishment for his treatment of the polling officers, saying they “hope he was arrested” and that he “should be held accountable” for his behavior. “Please tell me this mf got arrested,” a third user declared.
On the whole, the reaction to the clip is one of condemnation towards Trump supporters, with users describing the man as everything from “garbage” to a “loser,” a “s**t bag,” and a “Nazi stormtrooper.” Viewers deduced in the replies that the altercation may have been caused by the man’s hat since multiple states have banned wearing political apparel at the polls.
Wearing politically-themed shirts, hats, and buttons is considered electioneering, or another form of campaigning, and is banned in 22 states. That might explain why the man threw his hat at the queue in the video, but it certainly doesn’t explain the aggressive behavior that followed. It marks the most recent instance of votes being disrupted in the lead-up to election day, with multiple ballot drop boxes being set on fire in Washington and Oregon earlier this week, potentially losing hundreds of votes.
Meanwhile, we’ve seen similar tantrums from Trump voters in recent weeks, from a mother sparring with her son over Harris/Walz signs to a MAGA supporter being unable to define communism. They must get their tantrum-throwing chops from the toddler in chief himself.