Arson destroys hundreds of ballots in a Washington state mailbox. •Nebraska Examiner

State and federal authorities are investigating an intentionally set fire that destroyed ballots in a mailbox in southwestern Washington state.

Destroyed ballots were recovered from the mailbox at the Fisher’s Landing Transit Center in Vancouver. Some may still be duplicated and counted, officials said.

“It’s heartbreaking. It is a direct attack on democracy,” said Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey.

Kimsey said hundreds of ballots had been destroyed. It was not immediately known exactly how many ballots were burned or damaged. The FBI is one of the agencies investigating the incident.

Vancouver is located in the 3rd Congressional Districtwhere Democratic U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is running for re-election against Republican Joe Kent. The race is one of a few nationwide that is expected to determine partisan control of the U.S. House of Representatives. In 2022, Gluesenkamp defeated Perez Kent with 2,629 votes.

In a statementGluesenkamp Perez called for “an overnight law enforcement presence” at all mailboxes in the county through Election Day. “Southwest Washington cannot risk losing even one vote to arson and political violence,” she said.

Kent, op posted a video on Xcondemned the “attack on our democratic process” and said he had “complete confidence in our law enforcement that they will get to the bottom of this.”

At approximately 4 a.m. Monday, Vancouver Police responded to a report of the ballot drop box at 3510 SE 164th Ave. was smoking and on fire. When officers arrived, they found a suspicious device next to the box, according to a police report.

The fire was extinguished and the Metro Explosive Ordnance Disposal team retrieved the device. Arson investigators from the city police and fire department responded.

After examining the damaged box, Kimsey said it appeared to him that the fire had been started outside and had spread inside the box.

The ballots were removed from that box for the last time at 11 a.m. on Saturday. “Anyone who used that mailbox after 11 a.m. should get a replacement,” he said.

Voters can go www.votewa.gov to see if their ballot has been received. Call Clark County for a replacement election office at 564-397-2345 or send an email to (email protected).

Clark County first installed ballot drop boxes in 2005. There are now 23. The one at Fisher’s Landing will be replaced Monday, Kimsey said.

As a result of the incident, he said the county will adjust the collection schedule to ensure ballots are collected each evening.

Earlier this month, before voting began, someone caused minor damage to a mailbox in downtown Vancouver. Kimsey said police are investigating and did not know if that was related to what happened Monday.

Meanwhile, police in Portland, Oregon, are investigating the discovery of an incendiary device in a ballot box around 3:30 a.m. on Monday.

In Oregon, the Multnomah County Elections Department said in a news release that fire extinguishers in the box protected nearly all ballots. Three were damaged and the elections office plans to contact those voters so they can receive replacement ballots.

Ballot boxes damaged in Portland, Vancouver on Monday morning

In a news release, the FBI said it is working with federal, state and local partners to actively investigate the two incidents in Vancouver and Portland to determine who is responsible.

Anyone with information can contact the nearest FBI office and submit information at tips.fbi.gov or call 1-800-225-5324.

Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs on Monday denounced the arson and said he is confident that every “impacted voter” will receive a replacement ballot in time to participate in the Nov. 5 election .

“I strongly condemn all acts of terrorism aimed at disrupting lawful and fair elections in Washington State,” he said. “Despite this incident, I have full confidence in the ability of our county elections official to keep Washington’s elections safe for all voters.”

The leader of Washington state’s Republican Party said what happened in Vancouver reinforces the need for the state to move away from mail-in voting.

“Washington must return to same-day in-person voting,” party Chairman Jim Walsh said in a statement. “Our experiment with ‘100% voting by mail’ is not secure because of the broken chain of control inherent in voting by mail. These arsons are proof of that.”

Washington State Democratic Party Chairman Shasti Conrad urged voters who used the drop box to check the status of their ballots.

“Voting is safe and easy, and Washington state is proud to have one of the most secure election systems in the country,” Conrad said in a statement. “We take the rights of every voter very seriously.”

This article first appeared in the Washington State Standarda sister site to the Nebraska Examiner in the States Newsroom network.