Rubio Campaign Canvasser ‘Brutally’ Beaten By Miami Local

An assailant attacked a campaign canvasser for Sen. Marco Rubio and seriously injured him late Sunday, Oct. 23. The attacker told the victim that Republicans weren’t welcome in his neighborhood, Rubio and local police said on Monday, Oct. 24.

25-year-old Javier Lopez of Hialeah was arrested at the scene by responding cops. The unidentified victim was found with cuts and bruises, said reports.

According to Hialeah police, Lopez approached the victim while he was distributing campaign materials in the Miami-area city and said: “he was not allowed to walk on the sidewalk and pass out fliers in his neighborhood.”

The canvasser walked across the street to avoid Lopez, but Lopez followed him, said reports.

According to a police spokesperson, the unfortunate victim was hit multiple times in the face by Lopez causing injuries.

He said, “Mr. Lopez then struck the victim multiple times in the face causing the injuries.”

Several pictures of the victim were tweeted by Rubio, showing him bloodied and swollen in the back of an ambulance and in a hospital bed.

He tweeted about the attacks on his canvassers.

Rubio tweeted, “Last night one of our canvassers wearing my T-shirt and a [Gov. Ron] DeSantis hat was brutally attacked by 4 animals who told him Republicans weren’t allowed in their neighborhood in #Hialeah #Florida.”
“He suffered internal bleeding, a broken jaw & will need facial reconstructive surgery,” he added.

The senator also addressed the attack at a campaign event in Hialeah on Monday, Oct. 24.

He talked about political violence and that no one should tolerate it. He also talked about how the governance of the country was decided by the ballot box and not by street mobs.

Rubio said “I can tell you this: political violence should not be tolerated by anyone,” to his audience, according to the media.

“Our side or their side, we don’t tolerate political violence. In this country, we decide who governs not by street mobs, we decide who governs at the ballot box,” he added.

Rubio is seeking a third six-year term against Democratic challenger Rep. Val Demings.

A RealClearPolitics average of polls showed Rubio leading Demings by six percentage points.