The FBI and local law enforcement are investigating after deliberately set fires at ballot boxes in Portland and Vancouver early Monday morning damaged three ballots in Oregon and destroyed hundreds in Washington.
Someone used an incendiary device early Monday morning to ignite a ballot box outside the Multnomah County Elections office in southeast Portland, but most ballots were unscathed, according to the county elections office and the Portland Police Bureau. Law enforcement believe the incident was connected to two incendiary devices found at ballot boxes in Vancouver, one on Oct. 8 and one Monday morning.
In Portland, security teams patrol and monitor ballot boxes around the clock, and they extinguished the fire before police arrived at around 3:30 a.m, according to police. A fire suppressant inside the box protected nearly all of the ballots. Three were damaged, and the elections office plans to contact those voters so they can receive replacement ballots.
“There were only three ballots that were in the box out of hundreds that had any damage whatsoever, and we were able to clearly read the voters’ names on those ballots, so we will be reaching out directly to those that were impacted,” county elections Director Tim Scott said at a press conference midday Monday.
Scott said his office will finish processing all other ballots dropped off over the weekend on Monday. Multnomah County voters can sign up for a ballot-tracking service at http://multnomah.ballottrax.net and receive text, phone or email alerts when their ballots have been mailed, received and accepted.
Security cameras caught a vehicle that appears to be a black or dark-colored Volvo S-60 manufactured between 2001 and 2004. The vehicle did not have a front license plate — required by law in both Washington and Oregon — and police believe it was connected to all three incidents.
Multnomah County replaced the damaged ballot box Monday morning. Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson urged voters not to let the incidents intimidate them.
“Please do not let today’s incidents or anything that happens between now and Election Day keep you from expressing yourself with your vote,” she said. “Our democracy depends on you and you can depend on us to keep this process safe and secure. The best thing you can do to support our elections workers is to vote early so please keep those ballots rolling in.”
Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade condemned the arson, while saying the limited damage shows that Oregon’s election system is secure.
“Make no mistake, an attack on a ballot box is an attack on our democracy and completely unacceptable,” Griffin-Valade said. “Whatever the motivation behind this incident, there is no justification for any attempt to disenfranchise voters.”
Gov. Tina Kotek also thanked the county elections office and law enforcement.
“Voter intimidation or any criminal act to undermine the upcoming election is un-American and will not be tolerated,” she said.
Across the Columbia River, hundreds of ballots were destroyed Monday morning by suspected arson to a ballot box at the Fisher’s Landing Transit Center in Clark County, Washington. Election officials there said anyone who dropped their ballot off after 11 a.m. Saturday should contact the Clark County elections office for a replacement.
The Washington State Standard reported that some ruined ballots may still be able to be duplicated and tallied.
“It’s heartbreaking. It’s a direct attack on democracy,” Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey said.
Kimsey said during the press conference that Clark County also uses fire suppressants inside its ballot boxes, but that didn’t work. The county will try to obtain better-working fire suppressants and is urging voters to drop off their ballots at election offices or in ballot boxes before 5:30 p.m.
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office and Vancouver Police Department said in a release on Monday evening they will increase patrols around ballot drop boxes in the city and unincorporated areas in the county. The Clark County Elections Office added it will station observers at the county’s 22 drop boxes 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The office said observers won’t confront anyone but they will report any suspicious activity.
The FBI said in a statement it is coordinating with federal, state and local partners to actively investigate the incidents in Vancouver and Portland.
UPDATED on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024 at 6:24 p.m. with new information from Clark County officials.
Julia Shumway is the Oregon Capital Chronicle’s deputy editor and lead political reporter. oregoncapitalchronicle.com