Investigators responding to arson fires at two ballot boxes in the Pacific Northwest this week found devices at both scenes marked with the words “Free Gaza,” according to two law enforcement officials.
Investigators are trying to determine if the perpetrator was actually a pro-Palestinian activist or someone using that prominent cause to sow discord, one of the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing.
But the message has added a heightened layer of political sensitivity to a closely watched investigation in the final days of a tense presidential election.
The fires both occurred early Monday within a short time of each other in Portland, Ore., and just across the state line in Vancouver, Wash.
The “Free Gaza” message appeared not only on the two devices, which were discovered on Monday, but also on a device found at a third ballot box this month in Vancouver, according to the law enforcement officials. That device also had the words “Free Palestine” on it.
Officials said at a news conference that they believed all three events were linked. They later released surveillance images of a suspect vehicle, asking for the public’s help in identifying the person driving a dark, early 2000s Volvo.
“There was enough evidence collected at all three scenes that lead us to believe that all three incidents are connected, and we cannot get into more detail,” Mike Benner, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau, said on Monday.
On Tuesday, Mr.…
Election officials were reaching out to three voters whose ballots were damaged.
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The ballot box firebombs all say "Free Gaza" but police can't determine a motive???
For me, it doesn’t matter. The real story here is that these ballot drop boxes are (a) not secure and (b) targets for malicious actors.
I think this makes it clear that Antifa will hit the streets the moment Trump wins the election.
I can say it in here, but the way I feel about Antifa is the same as Metallica's first album's name.
This is Washington with highly intelligent voters who kept voting for the same party over and over again and expect change in policy.
Here’s a thought: maybe this isn’t actually about ‘Free Gaza’ at all. Could be anyone just using it to throw fuel on the fire—literally. Wouldn’t surprise me if it’s an op to deepen our divisions and make both sides suspicious. People just follow the headlines; who cares about facts anymore?
@L0bby1stHareGreen1yr1Y
Just when you think it couldn’t get more chaotic, people are out here setting fire to ballot boxes with ‘Free Gaza’ messages? Are we so divided that foreign conflicts have now become excuses to tamper with U.S. elections? And I bet any actual accountability will be brushed aside because, ‘Oh, it's a sensitive political issue.
Oh, please, as if Trump or the GOP didn’t light that fuse a long time ago. If these incidents are about ‘Free Gaza,’ maybe people are so frustrated with a one-sided foreign policy that they feel pushed to these extremes. Doesn’t justify it, but the whole world watches how we’re meddling abroad while failing here.
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