Police investigate after Catherine McKenna campaign sign vandalized

A high profile Liberal MP and cabinet minister is dealing with an act of vulgar vandalism just days after Canadians voted in what some describe as one of the nastiest campaigns in our country’s history.

When staff arrived at the campaign office of Ottawa MP Catherine McKenna on Thursday morning, they were shocked to find a four-letter obscenity scrawled in red paint over a photo of the environment minister.

“This is really beneath us as Canadians. I’m angry and, quite frankly, really disappointed,” said a visibly shaken McKenna, who says she’s not sure what message the act sends to the women and girls of all ages who worked on her successful campaign.

WATCH: “We need to do better:” McKenna expresses dismay over vulgar vandalism

McKenna has been the subject of online vitriol over her central role in the Liberal government’s push to address climate change.

She likened the spray-painted epithet to the sort of abuse she receives regularly from “the trolls on Twitter,” adding that “it needs to stop.”

“I have two daughters. I have so many young women, and women on my campaign of all ages. They believe in politics and so do I,” said McKenna.

“It’s time for everyone to take a deep breath, myself included, and I think we need to think about how we do better.”

On Twitter, one of her Liberal colleagues called the act “absolutely appalling.”

“It takes a lot of courage to put your name on a ballot. Despite party stripes, no candidate should face this kind of hatred,” wrote Gagan Sikand, who won re-election in his Toronto-area riding on Monday.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford also took to Twitter, saying: “Disgusting. There is no place in Canada for hate like this. While we may disagree on matters, we must always respect one another.”

Ford’s online comments didn’t go unnoticed: McKenna responded with a tweet of thanks, saying “we can disagree but let’s do it respectfully.”

This type of graffiti was seen quite a bit on the campaign trail, mainly on lawn signs, with people scrawling often racist or anti-semetic remarks.

Even the Canadian Human Rights Commissioner is speaking out about what she saw in this election, saying it has left the country fractured and many Canadians feeling marginalized and divided.

“I call on our newly elected Parliament to take concrete action to confront racism and intolerance, a daily reality for millions of people in Canada. No one should be made to feel like a second-class citizen because of the colour of their skin, what they believe or where they are from,” said Marie-Claude Landry. “A country that stands for diversity, freedom and inclusion must not stand by and allow racism, intolerance and inequality to undermine our peace and prosperity. Whether you make these urgent human rights issues your priority — or you ignore them — they will be a part of your legacy.”

Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report