George Zimmerman: Self-identified Hispanic American
The individual at the center of the controversial Trayvon Martin shooting is a registered Democrat.
George Michael Zimmerman, born Oct. 5, 1983, registered as a Democrat in Seminole County, Fla., in August 2002, according to state voter registration documents.
It is unclear whether he voted for President Barack Obama in 2008.
Some in the media have sought to blame Republican politicians and conservative activists for Martin's death.
"[Republican politicians] reinforce and validate old stereotypes that associate the poor and welfare as criminal behavior with African-Americans and people of color, calling us lazy, undeserving recipients of public assistance. In the case of Trayvon, those festering stereotypes had lethal consequences," said MSNBC political analyst and Democratic fundraiser Karen Finney.
According to the document, Zimmerman's race is officially listed as Hispanic. The son of a white father and Peruvian mother, he has been described as a "white Hispanic" in most media reports.
Following the Feb. 26 fatal shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in a Sanford, Fla. gated community, Zimmerman has been the target of widespread outrage.
Zimmerman shot and killed Martin following a physical confrontation, but has yet to be charged with a crime. He says he acted in self-defense, a claim supported by the Sanford, Fla., Police Department investigating the case.
Protesters and activists led by professional racial justice advocates Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson have suggested Martin's killing was racially motivated, and have called for Zimmerman's arrest.
"We want George Zimmerman in court with handcuffs behind his back," Sharpton said last week.
Martin's mother, Sabrina Fulton, has alleged that Zimmerman killed her son "because of the color of his skin."
Craig Sonner, the attorney representing Zimmerman, has denied such allegations, noting that his client has acted as a mentor to a black single mother and her two children, and had helped them raise money for their all-black church.
For Zimmerman's safety, the Free Beacon has redacted his address from the registration document. The New Black Panther Party has offered a $10,000 bounty for Zimmerman's capture.