Arson destroys hundreds of ballots in Washington State • Nebraska Examiner ballot box

State and federal authorities are investigating an arson that destroyed ballots in a ballot box in southwest Washington state early Monday.

Spoiled ballots were removed from a box at the Fisher’s Landing Transit Center in Vancouver. Some will still be able to be copied and counted, officials said.

“It’s heartbreaking. This is a direct attack on democracy,” said Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey.

Kimsey said hundreds of ballots were destroyed. It was not immediately known exactly how many ballots were burned or damaged. The FBI is one of the agencies investigating the incident.

Vancouver is located in 3rd electoral districtwhere Democratic US Representative Marie Glusenkamp Perez is running for re-election against Republican Joe Kent. The race is one of a handful nationally expected to determine party control of the U.S. House of Representatives. In 2022, Glusenkamp Perez beat Kent by 2,629 votes.

in statementGlusenkamp Perez called for a “nighttime law enforcement presence” at all drop boxes in the district until Election Day. “Southwest Washington cannot risk losing a single vote to arson and political violence,” she said.

Kent, v video posted on Xcondemned the “attack on our democratic process” and said he had “full confidence in our law enforcement agencies that they are going to get to the bottom of it.”

At approximately 4 a.m. Monday, Vancouver police responded to a report that a ballot box at 3510 SE 164th Ave. smokes and burns. When officers arrived, they found a suspicious device next to the box, according to the police report.

The fire was extinguished and the explosive devices of the subway took away the device. City police and fire department arson investigators responded.

After inspecting the damaged box, Kimsey said it appeared to him that the fire had been set on the outside and entered the inside of the box.

The last time ballots were taken from this box was at 11 a.m. on Saturday. “Anyone who used that box after 11am should get a replacement,” he said.

Voters can go to www.votewa.gov to check if their ballot has been received. Call Clark County for a replacement electoral office at 564-397-2345 or email at (email protected).

Clark County first installed drop-off ballot boxes in 2005. They now have 23. The urn at Fisher Landing will be replaced Monday, Kimsey said.

As a result of the incident, he said the district will change its pickup schedule to ensure ballots are received every night.

Earlier this month, before voting began, someone caused minor damage to a drop box in downtown Vancouver. Kimsey said law enforcement is investigating and doesn’t know if it’s related to what happened Monday.

Meanwhile, police in Portland, Oregon, are investigating the discovery of an incendiary device inside a ballot box around 3:30 a.m. Monday.

In Oregon, the Multnomah County Elections Department said in a news release that a fire extinguisher inside the box protected nearly all ballots. Three were damaged, and the election office plans to contact those voters so they can get replacement ballots.

Damaged ballot boxes in Portland, Vancouver, Monday morning

In a news release, the FBI said it is coordinating with federal, state and local partners to actively investigate the two incidents in Vancouver and Portland to determine who is responsible.

Anyone with information can contact the nearest FBI office, provide information via tips.fbi.gov or call 1-800-225-5324.

On Monday, Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs condemned the arson and said he was confident any “affected voters” would receive a new ballot in time for the Nov. 5 election.

“I strongly condemn any act of terrorism aimed at disrupting a legitimate and fair election in Washington State,” he said. “Despite this incident, I have complete confidence in the ability of our county elections official to keep elections in Washington safe for all voters.”

The leader of the Washington state Republican Party said what happened in Vancouver reinforces the need for the state to abandon voting by mail.

“Washington needs to return to same-day in-person voting,” party chairman Jim Walsh said in a statement. “Our ‘100% vote-by-mail’ experiment is not secure because of chain-of-control breaches inherent in voting by mail. These fell under that confirmation.”

Washington State Democratic Party Chairman Shasti Conrad urged voters who used a drop box to check the status of their ballot.

“Voting is safe and easy, and Washington State is proud to have one of the most secure election systems in the country,” Conrad said in a statement. “We take the rights of every voter very seriously.”

This article first appeared in Washington State Standarda sister site of the Nebraska Examiner in the state’s Newsroom network.