Larry Elder's visit to homeless encampment becomes a hostile and physical confrontation
Los Angeles, California – California gubernatorial candidate Larry Elder's visit to a Venice homeless encampment ended shortly after it began due to a physical confrontation.
Within minutes of arriving at a homeless encampment via his "Recall Express" campaign bus on Wednesday, Larry Elder reversed course after allegedly being harassed by homeless people and numerous activists.
The GOP challenger in California's gubernatorial recall election was visiting the homeless encampment in an effort to further raise awareness and win residents' votes.
The purpose of this upcoming special election is to determine whether Governor Gavin Newsom should be recalled from office. If removed, a different candidate, potentially Elder, will assume the role of governor for the remainder of his term, which ends in January 2023.
According to the Los Angeles Times, it took all but 12 minutes for Elder to be accosted during his visit.
A video on Twitter, shot by Spectrum News reporter Kate Cagle, showed a woman tossing what appears to be an egg at the talk radio host's head.
The woman rode by on a bicycle, clad in a gorilla mask. Reports have indicated that the woman was white.
Given the fact that Elder is a Black man, and ape-related references have been commonly used in derogatory and offensive remarks towards African Americans, the act has been viewed as a racist assault.
Moments later, the woman returned, striking and threatening a man who appeared to be a member of Elder's team before he was rushed into an SUV for his safety.
An alleged assault forces Elder to change course
Elder tweeed after the incident: "My security detail was physically assaulted, shot with a pellet gun, and hit with projectiles."
The 69-year-old gubernatorial candidate went on to say that the "intolerant left" cannot stop his campaign, and that his camp will be victorious in efforts to recall Newsom and "save California."
Prior to being physically confronted, Elder and his team approached a homeless encampment on 3rd Avenue, where they were also clearly not welcome.
The Times reported that Elder's team was surrounded by various homeless people telling him to "get the hell out of here."
The recall election that will determine the fate of Gov. Newsom and Elder will take place on Tuesday, September 14.
Cover photo: IMAGO / UPI Photo