A Minnesota state Senate candidate said Monday his campaign will not be distracted by images posted where he lives that show a picture of him with an image of Hitler against the background of a swastika.
"This act will not keep me from pressing on with my message," said Jeff Backer, a Republican and the mayor of Browns Valley who is challenging incumbent Keith Langseth, DFL-Glyndon, for the District 9 Senate seat.
Backer said the posters started showing up Friday, stapled to telephone poles near the city's library and school.
Nine were found over the weekend, but Backer said at least five more showed up Monday.
In the latest posters, pictures of Backer have Hitler mustaches drawn on them, said Backer. One of the posters was duct-taped to a street sign, he said.
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Traverse County Sheriff Bob Marts said his office received a complaint, but authorities have no suspects or witnesses.
Marts said if the person or people responsible are found, it's possible they could face charges, but he was unsure what that might entail.
People have a right to express opinions, Marts said, but he added that a trespassing-type charge might be appropriate if someone posted images on property without permission.
The Sheriff's Department report lists Judith Backer, the candidate's wife, as the person who filed the complaint, Marts said.
He said the posters are being taken down as soon as they are found.
Langseth said Monday he had heard nothing about the posters and he had no idea who was behind them.
"It might be somebody just totally doing it on their own that either wanted to make my opponent look bad or make me look bad," Langseth said.
Backer said the swastika on the posters appeared to have been taken from a website.
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He said he is concentrating on the campaign. The posters, at this point, are "a trivial thing."
"We're still focused on what's important to the voters instead of what somebody's putting on the telephone poles," he said.
The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead and the Herald are both Forum Communications Co. newspapers.
