‘Wanted dead or alive’ scrawled over Golan’s face on campaign billboard, amid fears of political violence

A campaign billboard for the left-wing Democrats party has been vandalized with threatening graffiti targeting party chairman Yair Golan, amid growing concerns over political violence ahead of Israel’s October 27 election.

The words “wanted dead or alive” are scrawled across Golan’s face, alongside the accusation “a vile murderer of Jews” and the letters “KKK,” referring to the American white supremacist group the Ku Klux Klan.

The graffiti appears to target the Democrats’ openness to forming a government with Arab parties and their calls for diplomatic engagement with the Palestinians.

Golan posts a photo of the defaced billboard on X, writing, “The sign can be vandalized. Hope cannot. In 8 days, hope will defeat hatred. Our response will be at the ballot box.”

The incident comes amid fears of political violence surrounding the upcoming election. In July, President Isaac Herzog warned of “violence rearing its head” during election campaign season.

Earlier today, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir ordered the military to raise its level of alert ahead of next week’s vote, saying “the IDF’s mission is to enable the democratic elections to take place on schedule and safely.”

The Democrats filed a petition at the High Court of Justice last month, asking for an interim order requiring the Shin Bet and the government to provide state security for Golan, citing what it described as dozens of threats against him.

The High Court later asked Golan to withdraw his petition, saying it “cannot intervene in professional security matters handled by the Shin Bet.”

את השלט אפשר להשחית. את התקווה אי אפשר. בעוד 8 ימים התקווה תנצח את השנאה.

התשובה שלנו תהיה בקלפי. pic.twitter.com/UbbdTnwICj

— Yair Golan – יאיר גולן (@YairGolan1) October 19, 2026