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Fires at two ballot drop boxes in the Pacific Northwest destroyed hundreds of ballots this week, just days before Election Day, and investigators say both are responsible for the fires. We are searching for the culprit.
Many ballots in drop boxes in Portland were unaffected, but election officials say hundreds of ballots were destroyed in a second ballot box fire near Vancouver, Washington. did. These incidents are believed to be related to a third incident in Vancouver earlier this month.
The incident was reported in a September Department of Homeland Security bulletin obtained by the watchdog group Property of the People, stating that “some social media users have reported various ways to sabotage ballot boxes and evade detection. “We are discussing and encouraging them, and the potential for targeted attacks may be increasing.” Strengthen this election infrastructure through the 2024 election cycle.
“Election infrastructure remains an attractive target for some domestic violent extremists and other threat actors with election-related grievances seeking to disrupt democratic processes and election administration,” the bulletin said. “There is,” he warned.
“Make no mistake about it: Attacks on ballot boxes are attacks on our democracy and are completely unacceptable,” Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin Varade said Monday. “Regardless of the motivation behind this incident, any attempt to disenfranchise voters is unjustified.”
“We take the safety of election workers seriously and will not tolerate threats or acts of violence that seek to undermine our democratic process,” said Secretary of State Steve Hobbs in Washington.
“I strongly condemn any act of terrorism aimed at disrupting a lawful and fair election in Washington State.”
Here’s what we know:
The Portland Police Bureau said in a statement that an “incendiary device” was attached to the side of a ballot drop box and security personnel extinguished the fire around 3:30 a.m. Monday when Portland police were called to the site.
A second ballot box was set on fire early Monday at a bus stop in Vancouver, Washington, just 25 miles away, according to Vancouver police. Police said responding officers found a “suspicious device” smoking and burning next to the box.
Election officials said at a news conference Monday that fire extinguishing agents have been installed at all ballot drop boxes in Multnomah and Clark counties. Multnomah County Elections Director Tim Scott said the fire extinguisher inside the Portland box protected the more than 400 ballots inside, and only three ballots were damaged.
Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey said election officials are still counting all ballots related to the Vancouver fires, but believe hundreds of ballots were destroyed.
Kimsey said affected ballots must be allowed to dry before election officials can contact voters. He said the ballots got wet when it rained on Monday and crews were trying to extinguish the fire.
Voting in Oregon and Washington is almost entirely done by mail or by dropping off a ballot. Less than 1% of people in Multnomah County vote in person, Scott said. In Clark County, 60% of the ballots received are from drop boxes and 40% are received by mail, Kimsey said.
“Dropbox is a convenient and secure way for voters to return mail-in ballots without having to use the U.S. Postal Service,” said Jay Liestenberg, communications director at Voting Rights Lab. “It will help reduce the number of ballots returned by mail and reduce stress on the U.S. Postal Service and local election workers during busy election seasons.”
However, according to the Voting Rights Lab, dropboxes are under intense scrutiny from politicians and election officials, with 12 states enacting laws banning or restricting dropboxes, and half of them completely banning dropboxes. It is prohibited.
John Burnside and his wife cast their ballots Sunday afternoon in a drop box near their home in Vancouver, Washington.
The next day, I saw reports that someone had set fire to the ballot boxes, destroying hundreds of votes.
“When I saw the video of them raking up the ballots, I knew there was little chance it would work in my case,” Burnside told CNN. “We don’t know if they were able to retrieve the ballots from that box.”
Burnside said they had used the drop box in past elections and were worried someone would vandalize it.
“Our world has changed, and we need to rethink what we used to take for granted as being safe,” he said.
Burnside said she looked online and discovered her ballot had not been received, so she immediately ordered a replacement. This time, he said he will drive across town to the elections office to deliver his vote in person.
“It’s probably a 20-minute drive, but it’s well worth it at this point,” Burnside said.
Clark County Auditor Kimsey said anyone who dropped off a ballot in the damaged Fishers Landing Transit Center drop box between 11 a.m. Saturday and 4 a.m. Monday should go to VoteWA.gov. He said he would have to request a re-ballot online.
Oregon election officials plan to contact the three affected voters “using the unique identifier on their ballot envelope so they can receive a replacement ballot.” He said he is doing so.
“Voters should be assured that even if their ballot is in an affected box, their vote will be counted,” said Scott, the Multnomah County elections administrator.
Evidence of an incendiary device found in a ballot box on Monday indicates the fires are interconnected, and that an incendiary device was placed in another drop box in Vancouver on Oct. 8. The second incident is also connected, said Mike, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau. Benner.
“While we do not know the motive behind these acts, which appear to be the third in a row at this point, we do know that these acts are targeted and intentional,” the City of Portland said. Deputy Police Chief Amanda McMillan said. “We are concerned about deliberate attempts to influence the electoral process.”
Police said in a news release Monday that they have identified a “suspect vehicle” that left the scene of a fire in Portland. It was a black or dark-colored 2001-2004 Volvo S-60.
According to the Oregon Department of Driving and Motor Vehicle Services, 3,828 of those vehicles are registered in the state, and 558 of them have active registration status.
The FBI Seattle office told CNN it is working with state and local authorities on the investigation.
As Election Day approaches, state leaders are encouraging people to vote despite the incident and promising increased security around drop boxes.
“There are multiple ways for voters to cast their votes and make sure their voices are heard,” said Washington Governor Jay Inslee.
Multnomah County Chairwoman Jessica Vega Pederson said the drop boxes in Portland have already been replaced, and law enforcement in Multnomah County and Vancouver, Washington, plans to increase patrols of drop boxes in the area.
“Voter intimidation and criminal acts that undermine the upcoming election are un-American and cannot be tolerated,” Oregon Governor Tina Kotek said on TV’s “X.”
“We will increase security around ballot drop-off locations 24 hours a day,” Inslee said in a statement Monday night. Law enforcement has stepped up patrols by vehicle, and Kimsey said election staff are acting as lookouts at all 22 drop boxes and calling 911 to report suspicious activity.
Vancouver is in Washington’s 3rd Congressional District, represented by Congresswoman Marie Grusenkamp Perez, and is the site of one of the most competitive House races in the country.
In response to the ballot box fire, Grusenkamp Perez requested that law enforcement agencies patrol drop boxes at night until Election Day.
The Democratic congressman told CNN’s Caitlan Collins that he’s not angry that ballots were destroyed for partisan reasons, but that “I’m an American and I’m angry about the corrosive and toxic environments I’ve seen across the country.” “Because we’re seeing people come back in really toxic, toxic conditions.” That’s an ugly way. ”
Larry Olson, vice president of LaserFab, a Washington state-based company that manufactures ballot boxes used in Multnomah County, Oregon, said his company works closely with election officials to tamper with ballot boxes as much as possible. He said it was designed to prevent this. He said the boxes are made of steel, can weigh up to 1,000 pounds, are typically bolted to the ground, and in some counties are supplemented with extinguishing agent.
“Our boxes are obviously inanimate objects and can be easily repaired or replaced, but what’s really disheartening is to see these officials come under attack,” Olson said. spoke.
CNN’s Nicole Chavez, Taylor Romine, David Williams and Natasha Chen contributed to this report.
