New Hampshire Republican Party HQ hit with ‘Nazis’ graffiti

The New Hampshire Republican State Committee headquarters in Concord was vandalized overnight Wednesday, police said.

Vandals spray-painted the word “Nazis” inside the shape of a heart on the side of the building at 10 Water Street and broke a back window, Concord Police Lt. Sean Ford told the Concord Monitor.

Police were called to the scene at 9:07 a.m. Thursday after GOP workers noticed the vandalism, authorities said.

“We’re certainly looking for any help we could get from the public to get an idea of who might have done this,” Lt. Ford said.

Patrick Hynes, a senior adviser for the state’s Republican Party, said it didn’t appear anyone tried to illegally enter the building. He said there are security cameras surveilling the front of the building and not in the back, but that will soon change.

“I think it’s safe to say that the staff was concerned,” he told the Concord Monitor. “Obviously, it’s an unpleasant thing for anybody to experience.”

Lt. Ford said his department will determine whether the act should be investigated as a hate crime.

“When you start doing that stuff, that’s extreme,” he said.

Mr. Hynes said he didn’t think it amounted to a hate crime, instead calling it “politically motivated vandalism.”

Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican, said in a statement: “It is certainly disturbing and very sad to see vandalism with such hateful rhetoric. There is no place for that in our politics or society.”

The state’s Democratic Party Chairman, Ray Buckley, also condemned the crime.

“Vandalism is unacceptable, it’s inexcusable and it’s wrong,” he said. “The New Hampshire Democratic Party wholly condemns this criminal action and hopes the perpetrator is held accountable. There is no place for that in our politics.”