Hundreds of ballots in Washington state were potentially damaged after authorities reported that a Vancouver ballot drop box was burned in a Monday morning arson.
The Clark County Elections box located at the Fisher’s Landing Transit Center was “lit on fire this morning,” KATU News reporter Evan Bell said on X with a video of first responders extinguishing a flaming pile of ballots:
Hundreds of ballots were inside the box at the time of the fire, though it is not immediately clear how many may have been damaged, Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey said.
“KATU was told there were likely only a few that could be saved,” the outlet reported.
Investigators told the local station that the incident is believed to be connected to another drop box arson incident in Portland, Oregon.
Because the last time the Clark County ballot box was emptied was on Saturday at 11:00 a.m., voters who dropped off their ballots after that time have been instructed to contact the Election Auditor’s Office to get new ballots.
“It’s heartbreaking, it’s a direct attack on democracy. You know it shouldn’t happen, interfering with people’s vote is un-American,” Kimsey told KGW-TV:
Just spoke with Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey about the ballot box burning overnight that destroyed hundreds of…
Posted by Tim Gordon (KGW-TV) on Monday, October 28, 2024
The Vancouver Police Department released the following statement in response to the incident:
This morning at about 4:00 a.m., Vancouver Police responded to an arson at a ballot box located at 3510 SE 164th Ave. It was reported that the ballot box was smoking and on fire. Officers arrived and located a suspicious device next to the box. The ballot box was smoking and was on fire. Members of the Metro Explosive Disposal Unit (MEDU) arrived and safely collected the device, and the fire was extinguished. Detectives from the Vancouver Police Arson team and the Vancouver Fire Marshals also responded.
The FBI is continuing the investigation of this incident.
The FBI also released a statement:
The FBI is coordinating with federal, state and local partners to actively investigate the two incidents in Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, in the early morning hours of Monday, October 28th to determine who is responsible.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the nearest FBI office, provide information through tips.fbi.gov or call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324)
Police in Portland responded to a similar arson in the southeast portion of the city just hours before, finding that an “incendiary device that ignited the fire” was “attached to the side of the box.”
“We don’t know the motive behind these acts,” Portland Police Bureau (PPB) Assistant Chief Amanda McMillan said in a statement. “We do know acts like this are targeted and their intentional and we’re concerned about that intentional act trying to impact the election process. We’re dedicated to stopping this kind of behavior.”
PPB added a description of a vehicle suspected to be involved in both arson attacks, reporting that it was a “black or dark-colored 2001-2004 Volvo S-60” without a front license plate, and an unknown rear plate.
Three ballots were damaged in the Portland fire, NBC News reported.
