More than 100 letters containing an unknown white substance were mailed to election officials, state officials, and members of Congress, according to three election workers who were briefed on the investigation and spoke to Votebeat.
The FBI acknowledged an investigation into the letters on Thursday, though it did not state how many letters exactly were sent.
Election officers in Oklahoma and Louisiana reported receiving the letters in the mail, while federal officials reportedly intercepted others bound for New Hampshire, Ohio, and Connecticut. The U.S. Postal Service intercepted a letter to Democratic Senator Alex Padilla of California, while fellow Democratic Senator Chris Murphy reported receiving a letter in his Hartford, Connecticut, office.
“The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to various addresses nationwide, including Secretary of State offices and their related election offices,” the FBI stated. “Some of the letters contained an unknown substance and we are working closely with our law enforcement partners to respond to each incident.”
This comes as state election offices prepare for early voting and the November midterms. It also comes just a few weeks after the twenty-fifth anniversary of the anthrax attacks that followed 9/11, in which infected letters were mailed throughout the country in a similar fashion.
“Election officials should never have to fear for their personal safety while performing their duties, and there is no place in a peaceful democracy for violence, threats or acts of intimidation,” Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said in a Wednesday statement. “We have a duty to the citizens of Ohio to deliver secure and accessible elections, and these kinds of cowardly threats will not deter us from that mission.”