An Arizona congressional candidate said she was raped during an early-morning trip to repair her campaign road signs.
Bernadette Greene-Placentia told sheriff's deputies that an unknown man knocked her unconscious and then penetrated her while she was maintaining the road signs in the early hours of Aug. 14, according to a Maricopa County Sheriff's Office incident report provided to The Arizona Republic by a campaign aide.
Greene-Placentia, a Democrat, told deputies she was hit in the back of the head by two men between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m., after pulling into an empty parking lot to repair her street signs. She woke up to one of the men ending his sexual attack, she told deputies.
She said the attack left bruises on her arms from being held down
and a large bump on the back of her head, and she bled from her vagina for several days. One of the men also called her a "Democratic b---," she told deputies.
The Phoenix New Times first reported the allegations.
Green-Placentia's account could not be independently verified by The Arizona Republic. She could not immediately be reached for comment.
The story became public as an alleged 2024 gang rape at Cornell University dominated headlines nationwide.
The Sheriff's Office confirmed an investigation was ongoing.
Greene-Placentia told authorities she did not remember what the two men looked like or what they were wearing, but said one was wearing black boots and had small feet.
She said the attack may have happened in the Sun City area, north of 99th Avenue and south of Bell Road, but she did not remember the exact location. She told deputies she remembered only a yellow-and-black sign, which may have been a laundromat.
She told officers she did not take photos of the injuries because of the trauma of the event. When a deputy asked about DNA evidence, she said she had washed her clothes since the incident.
Dave Moyer, a Maricopa County Sheriff's Office spokesperson, confirmed that deputies took a report on Aug. 31. He declined to comment or provide the report, citing an active investigation.
The allegations became public one month before the Nov. 3, 2026, midterm election and on the first day of early voting.
Greene-Placentia is running against incumbent Republican Rep. Abe Hamadeh in Arizona's 8th Congressional District. A former truck driver, she has billed herself as a working-class answer to President Donald Trump's style of politics, arguing the Democratic Party has failed to reach ordinary people.
Her story was met with an outpouring of support from Democrats in Arizona's Capitol Hill delegation.
Rep. Adelita Grijalva called the allegations "absolutely horrific" in a statement posted to social media, offering Greene-Placentia "my deepest support and solidarity."
"I’m absolutely heartbroken to hear this news, and I’m thinking of Bernadette and her loved ones during this incredibly difficult time," Sen. Ruben Gallego said in a message posted to the social media platform X. "We cannot tolerate political or sexual violence in any form. Those responsible must be held accountable."
"What happened to Bernadette Greene-Placentia is an outrage," Sen. Mark Kelly wrote on social media. "It took real courage for her to speak publicly about something so painful. The criminal who did this must be found and held fully accountable."
"What happened to Bernadette is horrific. No one should ever be subjected to this kind of violence — especially while engaging in the democratic process," Rep. Greg Stanton wrote. "I spoke to her today to thank her for her extraordinary courage in coming forward. Whoever did this must be held fully accountable."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona US House candidate says she was raped while fixing road signs
