Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee has activated some Washington National Guard members to be on standby in the event they are asked to support local law enforcement and the Washington State Patrol during election week.
Inslee said in a news release on Friday that the activation is a precautionary measure taken in response to incidents in October in which incendiary devices were set off on ballot drop boxes in Vancouver, Washington, and in Portland, Oregon.
He also cited U.S. Department of Homeland Security warnings of threats to election infrastructure during the 2024 election cycle as a reason for the measure. His order activates as many members of the Washington National Guard as determined necessary for up to four days, beginning Monday and ending at 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 8.
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It comes after the man suspected of setting fires in ballot drop boxes in Oregon and Washington state is an experienced metalworker and may be planning additional attacks, authorities said Wednesday.
Investigators believe the man who set the incendiary devices at ballot boxes in Portland, Oregon, and nearby Vancouver, Washington, had a wealth of experience in metal fabrication and welding, said Portland Police Bureau spokesman Mike Benner.
The way the devices were constructed and the way they were attached to the metal drop boxes showed that expertise, Benner said. Authorities described the suspect as a white man, age 30 to 40, who is balding or has very short hair.
Police previously said surveillance showed the man driving a black or dark-colored 2001 to 2004 Volvo S-60. The vehicle did not have a front license plate, but it did have a rear plate with unknown letters or numbers. The incendiary devices were marked with the message Free Gaza, according to a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation.
A third device placed at a different drop box in Vancouver earlier this month also carried the words Free Palestine in addition to Free Gaza, the official said.
Investigators are trying to identify the person responsible and the motive for the suspected arson attacks, which destroyed or damaged hundreds of ballots at the drop box in Vancouver on Monday when the boxs fire suppression system didnt work as intended. Authorities are trying to figure out whether the suspect actually had pro-Palestinian views or used the message to try to create confusion, according to the official.
Surveillance images captured a Volvo pulling up to a drop box in Portland just before security personnel nearby discovered a fire inside the box on Monday, according to Benner. The early-morning fire was extinguished quickly thanks to the boxs suppression system and a nearby security guard, police said. Just three of the ballots inside were damaged.
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