Federal investigators have opened an inquiry after a series of envelopes containing unidentified substances were mailed to district offices of U.S. lawmakers and to state election authorities ahead of next month's midterm elections. At some offices, staff evacuated after opening envelopes that contained a white powder.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are tracing the route of the suspicious mailings sent to congressional and state election offices, according to The Hill, a U.S. political news outlet, and the BBC on the 16th. The U.S. Capitol Police have also launched an investigation. Investigators have not disclosed how many institutions were targeted in total, and said some of the mailings were intercepted before reaching their destinations.
The Hill reported that suspicious mail had been delivered to the district offices of at least 20 lawmakers from both parties, or had been intercepted by investigators while en route to those offices. Among them were Republican Sens. Mike Rounds, Pete Ricketts and Ted Cruz, and Democratic Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith. More than 15 House members also said similar mailings had arrived at their district offices.
The recipients confirmed by the BBC included the offices of Democratic Sens. Alex Padilla, Chris Murphy and Kirsten Gillibrand. CBS News reported that suspicious mail was also sent to Senate Democratic floor leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester of the same party.
State agencies that handle elections also reported cases. Delaware election officials said they followed security procedures after opening a letter containing a white powder on the 15th. The Oklahoma State Election Board and the Louisiana secretary of state's office also said they had received mail containing a white powder. In Louisiana, a staff member evacuated immediately after opening the mail. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said the Postal Inspection Service intercepted a white-powder mailing headed for his office before delivery.
Lawmakers' offices also took emergency measures. A staff member at the Santa Cruz office of Rep. Jimmy Panetta of California found a white powder while opening an envelope, according to the congressman's office. The staff member put the envelope in a trash can, evacuated colleagues and called 911. An initial medical examination found no health problems. The FBI said it had received and was reviewing the reports and was working with other investigative agencies to identify a suspect.
Lawmakers from both parties voiced concern. Rounds, whose South Dakota office received one of the mailings, said on social media that he was deeply concerned by what he described as a continuing pattern of deceptive threats aimed at intimidating staff, and that such acts can never be tolerated in American society. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat, called it a deliberate and wide-ranging attack on democracy and the electoral system.
Similar incidents have recurred ahead of U.S. elections. According to the BBC, suspicious packages were sent to election officials in 17 states before the 2024 presidential election. In 2023, suspicious envelopes were mailed to election offices in at least five states, and fentanyl was detected in some of them.