Antisemitic Vandalism Hits Cohen Campaign Signs

Campaign signs are usually throwaway political clutter. But this week in San Jose, a handful of David Cohen signs turned into something uglier — a targeted act that his campaign and local leaders are treating as antisemitic intimidation. Cohen is a San Jose councilmember running for California’s 10th State Senate District, and several of his signs along East Brokaw Road were found altered with Star of David stickers inside the “o” in his last name. The signs were discovered Tuesday, May 6, and San Jose police are investigating. (sanjosespotlight.com) ### What exactly happened? The campaign said staff found multiple defaced signs on Brokaw Road, and police later said officers responded to the 500 and 600 blocks of East Brokaw Road after a vandalism report. The markings were not random scribbles. They were placed in a way tha(sanjosespotlight.com)ossible hate incident. (sanjosespotlight.com) ### Why is the Star of David the issue here? The symbol itself is central to Jewish identity and Judaism. So the point is not that a Star of David is inherently hateful. The point is context — someone put the symbol onto a Jewish candidate’s signs without consent, in a way the (sanjosespotlight.com)o you are.” (ktvu.com) ### Who is David Cohen? Cohen represents San Jose’s District 4 on the City Council and has held that seat since 2021. He is now running as a Democrat for California State Senate District 10, a seat currently held by Aisha Wahab, and Ballotpedia lists him on the June 2, 2026 primary ballot. That matters because the vandalism hit in the middle of an active state race, not after the fact. (ktvu.com) ### When did the vandalism happen? The campaign said it does not know the exact moment, but the signs appear to have been altered sometime between April 28 and May 5. That window matters because campaign signs sit in public for days, so there may not be a clean surveillance trail. It also means investigators are working backward from a broad timeframe rather than a single overnight incident. (sanjosespotlight.com) ### How are police handling it? San Jose police confirmed they are investigating after the report Tuesday. Public statements from the department and police chief stressed that nobody should be targeted over religion, beliefs, background, or values. There has not been a public announcement of an arrest or identified suspect so far. (sanjosespotlight.com) ### Why does this hit harder than normal sign vandalism? Because campaign signs get damaged all the time. That’s boring, if illegal. But identity-based vandalism is different — it tries to send a message not just to the candidate, but to everyone who shares that identity. And S(sanjosespotlight.com) that pattern. (nbcbayarea.com) ### What does it mean politically? The obvious effect is fear and distraction. The broader effect is a test for local institutions — police, prosecutors, and other elected officials — on whether they treat this as more than campaign-season ugliness. In a primary race, even a small act like this can reshape the tone of the contest by making identity itself part of the battlefield. (sanjosespotlight.com) ### Bottom line This was a small act in physical scale — just a few signs on one San Jose corridor. But the message was bigger than the property damage. When a candidate is marked out by religion during an active election, the real target is the boundary of who gets to participate in public life without being threatened. (sanjosespotlight.com)