SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) -- There has been a rise in threats made against local elected officials and candidates, prompting some to consider leaving their post or change their stance on a specific issue due to a 'climate of fear,' according to a recent study out of the University of San Diego.
The study was led by Rachel Locke, the director of the Violence, Inequality and Power (VIP) Lab at USD's Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice.
The team behind the study asked respondents how the probability of becoming the target of threats or harassment has influenced the way they carry out their public service.
According to their results, more than 6% of the elected officials interviewed said they had changed their vote on a specific issue due to the fear of threats and harassment. About a quarter of them stated they have become less vocal at meetings, while 30% said they have become more vocal.
Meanwhile, 43% of officials said they even considered leaving their position, the study said.
Examples cited in San Diego County included threats and harassment toward female elected officials specifically.
A city councilwoman in Carlsbad who served from 2016 to 2021 alleged that she was stalked and threatened online by men which eventually prompted her to file a restraining order to protect herself and her spouse. A 2020 article published by our reporting partners at The San Diego Union-Tribune identified her as Cori Schumacher.
The study cited another councilwoman within San Diego County who was elected in 2018 filed two police reports against men who threatened, harassed and stalked her within the two years following her election. A 2020 report by Voice of San Diego identified her as current Carlsbad Mayor Pro Tem Priya Bhat-Patel.
According to the study, data was collected from four sources. First, local elected officials were surveyed about their experiences with and attitudes toward threats and harassment. In 2022, the research was focused on San Diego County only, with an expansion to include Riverside and Imperial Counties in 2023-2024.
Then, the team behind the study conducted follow-up interviews with the survey respondents. Thirdly, researchers collected a list of all elected officials in San Diego County as of January 2022 with Twitter accounts and searched their replies and mentions from January 2016 to December 2022. Those tweets were reviewed for contents deemed likely to contain threats, harassment or aggressive language.
The last part of the methodology consisted of gathering information from media sources -- such as print, radio and television news -- regarding incidents of threats and harassment targeting politicians in the three California counties mentioned in the study. The full methodology, as well as the study itself, can be found here.
According to the National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology and Education Center, between 2013 and 2016, there were 38 federal charges, on average, involving threats to elected officials a year. That average climbed to 62 federal charges brought annually between 2017 and 2022, data showed.