Ballot boxes in Oregon and Washington set on fire earlier this week reportedly contained a message that read, “ALL DROP BOXES WILL BURN. FREE GAZA.”

Multiple Ballot Boxes Set On Fire, Hundreds Of Ballots Destroyed

"I can exclusively report that a handwritten note declaring 'ALL DROP BOXES WILL BURN. FREE GAZA' was discovered in a Clark County, WA ballot drop box shortly after hundreds of ballots were burned in WA & OR through the use of incendiary devices," Andy Ngo wrote.

From the New York Post:

Between 3 and 4 a.m. on Monday, fires caused by incendiary devices were discovered in ballot boxes in Vancouver, Wash. and neighboring Portland, Oregon.

A built-in fire suppressant stopped most of the flames at the Portland location, but hundreds of ballots were destroyed at the drop box at Fisher’s Landing Transit Center in Vancouver.

The FBI is now heading the investigation into the two Monday fires, which are believed to be linked and also connected to a third attempted arson attack earlier in the month in Vancouver.

Election officials and law enforcement have remained largely mum about their investigation.

They’ve directed those who used the ballot boxes over the weekend to track their ballots online and to contact the local auditor’s office for replacement ballots if needed.

But according to an election official with knowledge but not authorized to speak on record, a political letter was discovered in a ballot box at the Vancouver Mall Parking lot location just a few hours after the fires were put out.

The Associated Press reports:

A third device placed at a different drop box in Vancouver earlier this month also carried the words “Free Palestine” in addition to “Free Gaza,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation.

Investigators are trying to identify the person responsible and the motive for the suspected arson attacks, which destroyed hundreds of ballots at one location in Vancouver on Monday when the drop box’s fire suppression system didn’t work as intended. Authorities are trying to figure out whether the person who left the devices actually had pro-Palestinian views or used the message to try to create confusion, according to the official.

Surveillance images captured a Volvo pulling up to a drop box in Portland just before security personnel nearby discovered a fire inside the box on Monday, according to Portland Police Bureau spokesman Mike Benner.

The early-morning fire at the drop box in Portland was extinguished quickly thanks to a suppression system inside the box as well as a nearby security guard, police said. Just three of the ballots inside were damaged.

The ballot box in Vancouver that burned also had a fire suppression system inside, but it failed to prevent hundreds of ballots from being scorched, said Greg Kimsey, the longtime elected auditor in Clark County, Washington, which includes Vancouver. Kimsey said Tuesday that the exact number of destroyed ballots wasn’t known, and that about 475 damaged ballots had been retrieved from the box.

 

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