Columbia Council candidate accuses opponent of online harassment. Is there proof?
A candidate running to keep her seat on Columbia City Council has leveled a stark accusation of racism and online harassment against her opponent and has called for him to withdraw from the race, but she doesn’t appear to have hard evidence to support her claim.
Aditi Bussells, current at-large Columbia City Council member, has accused her opponent in the election Sam Johnson of being behind a slew of racist messages Bussells has received on social media. But when asked by The State if she has evidence to support linking the harassment to Johnson or his campaign, she could not provide any.
Johnson categorically denied the accusations leveled against him during a press conference held Wednesday morning in concurrence with the start of early voting for the runoff election.
“Let me be clear. I condemn racism, bigotry and hate in every form, full stop,” Johnson said. “Launching baseless accusations and claims, we should hold ourselves to a higher standard.” He added, “To my knowledge, my campaign has not been involved in any actions or anything that would use derogatory language in her direction at all.”
When asked by The State to provide evidence to support her claim, Bussells said she assumes Johnson’s campaign is behind it because some of the comments also urge support for Johnson.
“It’s just easier for me to be able to, like, assume and [it be] a safe assumption, given some of the things that people have posted with their name behind it, that probably people in his orbit are those that have done this,” Bussells told The State. “I do see it as a coordinated campaign.”
Bussells made the accusation in a public Facebook post Tuesday. She shared screenshots of comments made on her social media pages telling her to “assimilate” and that she is “not one of us.”
Several of the accounts leaving the inflammatory comments are private and were created this month. But Bussells could provide no evidence that anyone in Johnson’s campaign was associated with the private accounts.
In her Facebook post about the comments, Bussells tied the online harassment directly to Johnson’s campaign, writing, “What we’re seeing from Sam Johnson’s campaign is hateful, racist, and deeply disappointing.”
That post continues, “In recent days, his top supporters have launched vicious attacks online - in some cases using fake accounts, while others use their real names - spreading lies, and fueling hate. Instead of condemning it, Sam Johnson has stayed silent.”
Johnson Wednesday morning posted on his own Facebook page that he condemns the racist comments targeting Bussells, and that he empathizes “deeply with my opponent for being wrongfully attacked.” The post also reiterates that his campaign is not responsible for the messages.
The State did not find any clear links between the accounts leaving the harassing comments to anyone in Johnson’s circle.
Researchers estimate that up to half of all internet traffic comes from “bot” accounts, which often use automated software to post repetitive statements across social media, and it can be difficult to determine if certain accounts are bots, or being operated by real people.
Bussells said she has reported the commenters to the Columbia Police Department. “If they can find IP addresses, great, but … I don’t have anything beyond that.”
Bussells and Johnson are campaigning to win the at-large Columbia City Council seat currently held by Bussells.
Sam Johnson won the most votes Nov. 4, with 7,151 ballots cast in his favor or about 47% of all ballots cast in the race. Bussells finished Tuesday with 43% of the vote – 6,517 ballots were cast for her. But neither candidate received the needed 50% plus one vote to win the seat outright during the Nov. 4 election last week. This means they will face off again next week in a Nov. 18 runoff election.
This story was originally published November 12, 2025 at 11:37 AM.
