Steven Soper (courtesy: Palm Beach Post)

A disagreement about voting for president nearly turned deadly in South Florida, where a Marine enlistee is now facing charges for threatening to kill his girlfriend, who happens to support John Kerry.

Steven Soper, 18, of Lake Worth, Fla., reportedly became enraged upon learning Stacey Silviera was leaving him, and that she planned to vote for Kerry in next Tuesday's election.

"I kill you," he said, according to an arrest report. "You want (to) live to see the election?"

The Palm Beach County Sheriffs office says Soper, a supporter of President Bush, began pushing Silviera Tuesday night when she returned some of his personal items to his home.

Media reports say Soper then held her captive, and was threatening to stab her in the neck with a screwdriver.

Silviera was able to break free, and a deputy fired a Taser – an electronic stun gun – at Soper to subdue him.

Soper is now in custody, held without bail until a mental health assessment is completed. Charges against him include aggravated battery, false imprisonment and resisting arrest without violence. He's slated to appear in court again tomorrow.

Sheriff's spokesman Paul Miller says his office occasionally deal with political disputes, but nothing so severe.

"This is the first incident the sheriff's office has been involved in that escalated to such a degree," he told the Palm Beach Post. "We haven't had anything like this."

Soper's mother, Diane Carmarda, told reporters her son comes from a military family, and that his older brother is already stationed in Iraq, as the only priest in Fallujah.

"My entire family comes from the military, and he would very much like to go into the service," she said.