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Threat and harassment incidents against local officials continued at a lower rate in April, following a spike at the start of the year driven by national political dynamics. BDI’s Threats and Harassment Dataset (THD) captured more than 20 events for the month, marking a decrease of over 50% from March and a return to levels recorded during much of 2022. At the same time, multiple high-profile cases of threats and harassment against state and federal officials were reported in April. While these incidents are not captured in the THD, which is focused on local officials, they underscore that public officials at all levels continue to face heightened risk.

The opening phase of the second Trump administration has had wide-ranging effects on the political violence risk environment. Drawing on the latest data and analysis from BDI and our partners, this explainer answers frequently asked questions about the trajectory of current political violence trends and highlights positive steps local leaders are taking to keep their communities safe.

This article published on Just Security provides steps communities can take during a period of hostility and elevated threats to public officials.

The latest BDI-CivicPulse survey of 400 local elected officials and 200 school board officials continue to show a high baseline of both hostile experiences and worry about future hostility through the first quarter of 2025, negatively affecting their willingness to take part in key activities like participating in public events. New survey questions also reveal that local officials are seeking expanded resources to mitigate these risks and their impacts.

The number of reported threat and harassment incidents against local officials held steady from April to May, following a spike at the start of the year. BDI’s Threats and Harassment Dataset (THD) captured nearly 30 events for the month, bringing the total number of incidents recorded so far in 2025 to more than 200. In addition to community-specific disputes, national issues like immigration policy and LGBTQ+ rights were key drivers of threats and harassment in May.

Drawing on more than 820 survey responses from school board members, almost 40 in-depth interviews with impacted officials, and BDI’s longitudinal dataset of threat and harassment events, our new report presents a full mixed methods analysis of targeted hostility facing local school boards.

Threats and harassment against local officials rose in June. BDI’s Threats and Harassment Dataset (THD) recorded 40 incidents for the month, marking an increase of nearly 40% from the past two months. In total, more than 250 incidents have been reported in the first half of 2025, up 9% from the same period in 2024. This upward trend comes as new survey findings show that local officials are seeking additional safety support like enhanced privacy protections and personal security to mitigate the elevated risk of hostility.

Drawing on interviews with more than 30 practitioners and researchers conducted in 2025, this discussion paper analyzes new qualitative data on the community safety and de-escalation ecosystem through a field-building framework.

After the deadly attack in Minnesota, local officials tell BDI that they are experiencing a high level of fear and emotional strain, and that the burdens of public exposure are increasingly affecting their personal lives. Safety concerns are playing a significant part in decisions about remaining in office or seeking higher elected positions, particularly for women and younger officials. To push back, officials continue to call for short-term mitigation support, like improved security at public meetings and personal data protections, as well as long-term efforts to counter the normalization of hostility and hold perpetrators accountable.

Threat and harassment incidents against local officials rose from August to September. The latest Threats and Harassment Dataset (THD) update captured 70 new events, including almost 60 for September, bringing the total number of events recorded so far in 2025 to over 400. This spike in incidents was driven primarily by an increase in threats against officials in the aftermath of the September 10 shooting of Charlie Kirk.