In a disturbing turn of events, election officials in six states received suspicious packages on Monday, causing a wave of concern and disruption.
The packages, which contained a powdery substance, were sent to secretaries of state and state election offices in Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Tennessee, Wyoming, and Oklahoma. This unsettling incident marks the second time in the past year that election officials in multiple state offices have been targeted with suspicious packages.
According to ABC News, the FBI and U.S. Postal Service are currently investigating the incident. This latest scare has added a layer of tension to an already fraught voting season, with early voting underway in several states and less than two months remaining until the high-stakes elections for president, Senate, Congress, and key statehouse offices.
The packages reportedly contained a white powder substance. In most instances, the material was found to be harmless. Oklahoma officials confirmed that the material sent to their election office was flour, while Wyoming officials have yet to disclose whether the substance sent to them was hazardous.
In Iowa, the receipt of one such package led to an evacuation. "We have specific protocols in place for situations such as this," stated Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, following the evacuation of the six-story Lucas State Office Building in Des Moines. "We immediately reported the incident per our protocols."
Kansas was not spared from the scare, with a state office building in Topeka being evacuated due to suspicious mail sent to both the secretary of state and attorney general. Topeka Fire Department crews discovered several pieces of mail with an unknown substance on them. However, a field test found no hazardous materials, according to spokesperson Rosie Nichols. Despite the non-hazardous result, several employees in both offices were exposed to the substance and had their health monitored.
In Oklahoma, the State Election Board received a suspicious envelope containing a multi-page document and a white, powdery substance. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol, which oversees security for the Capitol, secured the envelope. Testing determined the substance was flour, according to agency spokesperson Misha Mohr.
In Wyoming, state workers in an office building adjacent to the Capitol in Cheyenne were sent home for the day pending testing of a white substance mailed to the secretary of states office.
This incident echoes a similar event last November when suspicious letters were sent to election offices and government buildings in at least six states, including the same building in Kansas that received suspicious mail this Monday. Some of the letters contained fentanyl, and even the non-toxic suspicious mail delayed the counting of ballots in some local elections.
The largest voting jurisdiction in one of the nations most important swing states, Fulton County, Georgia, was among the targeted offices. Four county election offices in Washington state had to be evacuated as election workers were processing ballots cast, causing a delay in vote-counting.
This series of events has led election workers across the country to stock up on the overdose reversal medication naloxone. It has also prompted election offices across the United States to increase the security of their buildings and enhance protections for workers. This comes in the wake of an onslaught of harassment and threats following the 2020 election and the false claims that it was rigged.
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