A mural depicting the American senate candidate Beto O’Rourke as a superhero has been vandalised just days after it was unveiled.
Phrases including “El Paso gentrifier supports Israel" and "No hero” were spray-painted on the massive artwork in the city of Austin.
It comes as the hotly contested race to be Texas senator between the Democrat candidate and Republican Ted Cruz was described as a “toss-up” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
Initially, the mural, created by the artist Chris Rogers, featured Mr O'Rourke in front of a Texas flag with his shirt unbuttoned and revealing the letter B reminiscent to that of Superman’s S.
It has now been half covered to hide the defacement with a new sign saying: “Vote now love trumps hate.”
Timothy Bresson, a city resident who lives near the mural, told the Austin American-Statesman he had seen many murals go up in the area but had not seen many of them attacked.
“You have a right to free speech so you’re allowed to voice your opinion,” he said. “But this is vandalism. It’s a criminal act.”
