Mar-a-Lago incident the latest to illustrate increasing threats to lawmakers

North Carolina lawmakers say threats — from verbal harassment to stalkers to armed constituents —  are reporting more threats against them have grown more frequent in recent years. 

The weekend security breach at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort — in which a Moore County man was shot after authorities say he raised a shotgun at federal agents — is putting the spotlight on increasing threats against all manner of elected officials. 

State officials saw the biggest jump in threat incidents in 2025, according to TorchStone Global, a risk mitigation consultancy. The firm tracks several threatening communications, harassment and armed encounters against a variety of groups, including federal, state and local lawmakers, as well as celebrities and community leaders.

The increase is partly why North Carolina lawmakers approved $2.5 million in October for added security at the North Carolina General Assembly complex.

The money was approved five months after an Asheboro raw-milk advocate was charged with bringing a concealed weapon to the state legislative complex in downtown Raleigh on a day when lawmakers were debating a bill that sought to ban the sale of raw milk for human consumption.

Neal Inman, chief of staff for House Speaker Destin Hall, said the public safety units at the legislature are using the money for added security measures.

“The legislative services office and General Assembly Police are still implementing the extra funding for security from last year. If they indicate going forward that we need to do more, the Speaker would be open to that conversation,” Inman said in a statement.

State Senate minority leader Sydney Batch, a Raleigh Democrat, previously disclosed that she dealt with a stalker, prompting coordination with law enforcement and heightened awareness about her personal safety. State Rep. Allison Dahle, D-Wake, says she has received hate-filled messages while in office, saying in a Monday interview that the atmosphere of threats changes daily routines.

“You watch your back, you might stay in the building, you might not go out, you know, you might not take a break outside in the fresh air,” Dahle said.

Rep. John Bell, R-Wayne, says he and close family members have also received threatening messages.

Security consultants say candidates are also targets. “The campaign officials and the candidates themselves really need to be aware of what's going on,” said Scott Stewart, a senior vice president at risk management consultancy TorchStone Global. “They need to be aware of this environment and really practice heightened awareness, any time that they're out in public.”

State leaders acknowledge that protective measures can mitigate — but not eliminate — risk.

Security experts say heightened political polarization, social media amplification and the ease of access to weapons have combined to create a volatile environment for elected officials.

“In the past, we had people [who] had some extremist views and they were more isolated,” Stewart added. “Whereas today, with a couple clicks and especially with the way the algorithms work for social media, you can very quickly run into like-minded extremists.”