Montreal Femen activist arrested at polling station in New York City

MONTREAL – A Montreal woman with ties to an international feminist group was arrested Tuesday after staging a topless protest inside a New York City polling station being used for the U.S. presidential election, police said.

Neda Topaloski, 30, and Tiffany Robson, 28, from Seattle, took off their tops and started chanting slogans against Donald Trump inside the building where the Republican candidate was scheduled to cast a ballot, according to New York City police.

The police source, who did not want to be identified, said Topaloski and Robson were arrested and charged with electioneering, a disorderly conduct-related violation.

They were released and given a criminal summons to appear in a Manhattan courtroom at a later date.

It is a crime in New York to disrupt a polling station but not for women to be topless.

Topaloski has previously disrupted events in the Commons and at the Quebec national assembly.

Last April, she posed as a journalist to get into a news conference inside Quebec’s legislature and began screaming to raise awareness about what she described as an anti-abortion bill.

Topaloski is known for her role in the international feminist group called Femen, whose members stage topless protests around the world.

Femen tweeted about the incident later on Tuesday, posting a photo of one of the women being arrested at the polling station.

“Femen activists protest Trump at the voting station shortly before his arrival,” the group tweeted. “HATE OUT OF THE POLLS!”