Election officials in the US state of Washington have taken measures to increase ballot security after several drop boxes were set on fire. The move comes less than a week before the presidential election on November 5.
The FBI is currently investigating the motives behind the arson attacks across several locations in the city of Vancouver, as well as in neighboring Portland, Oregon, FOX Seattle reported. In Washington’s Clark Country, more than 400 ballots were reportedly destroyed in the fires.
According to the Associated Press, citing an anonymous law enforcement official familiar with the investigation, several of the incendiary devices used in Vancouver had messages of “Free Gaza” and “Free Palestine” written on them.
In response to the attacks, auditors in several counties in Washington state have said that they would bolster ballot security. Kendall Hodson, the chief of staff at King County Elections, told FOX Seattle that ballots would be collected twice a day instead of once every 24 hours.
Hodson said that due to the fires, some voters now “feel more comfortable coming into our building and putting it right into our hands.” However, she said authorities “still have complete confidence in the security of those boxes in the field.”
The Associated Press reported that law enforcement officials are concerned that the culprit behind the arson attacks may strike again as investigators continue their efforts to track the perpetrator down.
Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs has described the fires as “horrible terrorist attacks” that aim to disrupt a fair election.
King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion has also warned that “any attempt to intimidate or discourage voters from making their voices heard will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The efforts to beef up security around ballot boxes come as both Republicans and Democrats have continued to accuse each other of undermining faith in the outcome of the November 5 vote. Both sides reportedly fear post-election civil unrest regardless of who is declared the winner.
As reported by Axios on Wednesday, law enforcement authorities in Washington DC have already started bolstering security and setting up fencing around the Capitol as part of Inauguration Day preparations as an “added level of security.”
Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers have also been calling on the National Guard to be prepared to quell any civil unrest when the new president is sworn in.