What to know after ballot box fires in Washington and Oregon

Washington — Ballot drop boxes were set on fire in two states, Washington and Oregon, just a week ahead of Election Day, as authorities were already on high alert for the possibility of violent incidents driven by claims of election fraud — including the sabotage of ballot drop boxes.  

Two ballot boxes went up in flames early Monday morning in Portland and Vancouver, which is just about 10 miles from Portland, just over the border. While most of the ballots in the Portland box were recovered, hundreds were thought to be lost in the Vancouver incident. 

Here’s what we know so far:

How many ballots were damaged? 

Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey told CBS News Tuesday evening that about 475 damaged ballots were recovered from the drop box in Vancouver. Kimsey said that for the “vast majority” of those ballots, officers were confident they would be able to identify the voters. After the wet ballots dry out, officials will be better equipped to assess the damage. 

Kimsey believes it is possible that other ballots were completely destroyed by the fire.

“I don’t know how many exactly, but I suspect there were because there was a fair amount of ash at the bottom of the ballot drop box,” he told CBS News.  

In Portland, three ballots out of hundreds were damaged, Multnomah County Elections Director Tim Scott told reporters, after suppression devices inside the ballot box almost immediately extinguished the flames ignited by an incendiary device. Washington election officials noted that fire suppression devices in the Vancouver box didn’t appear to work as well.

What’s next for voters whose ballots may have been lost?

The state and the counties keep track of every ballot sent and received, so they can tell whether someone’s got lost or destroyed, says CBS News election law contributor David Becker. Voters who returned ballots to the dropbox located at the Fisher’s Landing C-Tran Transit Center in Vancouver between Saturday at 11 a.m. and Monday at 3 a.m. PT have been advised by Kimsey to check their ballot’s status online at votewa.gov, where they can see whether their ballot has been received. 

“I’m very saddened by this incident,” Kimsey said in a statement, calling it “an attack on American democracy.”

If any of the voters Clark County election officials can identity have not already requested a new ballot, officials will automatically send them one to their address, Kimsey said. They will try to email, call or text them as well to inform them of the situation. 

In Portland, authorities were able to clearly read the names of the voters and were reaching out directly to the voters, Scott said. The undamaged ballots were set to be processed on Monday, and voters who cast their ballots between Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and Monday at 3 a.m. PT could call to check on the status of their ballot. 

“We have multiple systems and security measures in place to ensure your ballot is safe,” Scott said in a statement. “Your Elections team is working hard to make sure that every vote counts.”

The investigation

Authorities have identified the suspect’s vehicle, and the FBI is leading the investigation into the vehicle. 

The FBI said in a statement Monday that the agency is coordinating with federal, state and local partners to “actively investigate the two incidents” and “determine who is responsible.”

Federal investigators believe the suspect vehicle is a dark gray 2001 to 2004 Volvo sedan. Complicating the investigation, according to Portland police, is that the car had no front license plate and the back license plate is unreadable from surveillance images. 

Local authorities said incidents such as these are targeted and intentional, while noting that the investigation is ongoing. 

According to a federal bulletin published by the Department of Homeland Security on Monday, some online users on platforms frequented by domestic violent extremists have “encouraged violence against ideological opponents related to the use of mail-in voting,” along with promoting “methods of sabotaging ballot drop boxes.”

In Clark County, where the Washington incident occurred, officials will assign ballot box observers to watch all of the county’s ballot drop boxes 24 hours a day, in addition to increasing patrols around the boxes through Election Day. Election officials will also begin picking up the ballots at drop boxes more frequently. In Portland, election officials also plan to implement increased security measures and additional patrols. 

— Elli Fitzgerald contributed reporting.