A series of attacks on voting booths across the United States is increasing pressure on state and local officials who hope to oversee a safe and peaceful presidential election, both for early voting taking place in much of the country and by the time millions of Americans go to the polls next week.
The state of Washington, in the northwest of the country, confirmed to the Voice of America Monday that local police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are investigating reports of an alleged “incendiary device” placed in a ballot box in Vancouver early Monday morning.
Officials said no one was injured, but some of the ballots were damaged. Video obtained by local media showed firefighters responding to the scene, with some of the ballots burning on the ground.
Officials across state lines in nearby Portland, Oregon, reported that one of their ballot boxes was also attacked with an incendiary device about 30 minutes earlier. But a fire suppression system inside the collection box prevented all but three of the ballots from being damaged.
“Make no mistake, an attack on a ballot box is an attack on our democracy and is completely unacceptable,” Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade said in a statement shared with the VOA.
Washington’s secretary of state also condemned the apparent attacks.
“I strongly denounce any act of terrorism that aims to disrupt legal and fair elections in the state of Washington,” said Steve Hobbs. “We take the safety of our election workers seriously and will not tolerate threats or acts of violence that seek to undermine the democratic process.”
The incidents at the polls in Washington and Oregon follow last week’s attack on a ballot drop box in Phoenix, Arizona, in the southwest of the country. Officials arrested a suspect for setting fire to the polling station, damaging about 20 ballots.
The wave of attacks on mailboxes and ballot collection boxes comes as U.S. security officials are issuing new warnings about possible election-related violence by U.S.-based extremists.
“We believe domestic violent extremists (DVEs) will pose the most significant physical threat to government officials, voters, and election-related personnel and infrastructure,” the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement. an unclassified evaluation published in late September.
According to the assessment, potential targets include “polling locations, ballot drop boxes, voter registration sites, campaign events, political party offices, and vote counting sites.”
DHS warned that the greatest threat is likely to come from what it describes as “anti-government or anti-authoritarian domestic violent extremists, many of whom will likely be inspired by partisan political grievances or conspiracy theories.”
DHS and the FBI have also amplified their warnings in a series of non-public safety bulletins sent to law enforcement agencies across the country, some of which were obtained by Property of the People, a nonprofit group described as himself as “dedicated to the aggressive pursuit of government transparency.”
Some of the bulletins reviewed by the VOA cited growing calls on social media for attacks on vote collection boxes, as well as growing calls for civil war following the assassination attempt on former president and Republican candidate Donald Trump last July.
“The United States remains in a dynamic and elevated threat environment and we continue to share information with our law enforcement partners regarding the threats posed by domestic violent extremists in the context of the 2024 elections,” a DHS spokesperson told the VOAwhen asked about the newsletters.
“DHS continues to work with our partners to assess and mitigate emerging threats that may arise from domestic or foreign actors,” the spokesperson added. “The department continues to advise federal, state and local partners to remain vigilant for potential threats and encourages the public to report any suspicious activity to local authorities.”
While U.S. security officials believe the greatest threat of violence may come from anti-government or anti-authority extremists based in the United States, U.S. intelligence officials have expressed concern that adversaries such as Iran and Russia may also be pressuring them to carry out carried out attacks.
A declassified U.S. intelligence assessment released last week warned that officials are “increasingly certain” that Russia is beginning to engage in plans “aimed at inciting violence.”
In addition, he assessed that Iran “could also try to incite violence.”
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