Arabic version: السلطات الأميركية تحقق في رسائل مشبوهة أُرسلت إلى مكاتب الانتخابات

According to BBC News, federal authorities are investigating “potentially hazardous” letters containing “suspicious substances” sent to congressional and state election offices across the United States. The FBI and US Postal Inspection Service said they were working to trace the mailings, some of which were intercepted before reaching their intended recipients.

Authorities did not say how many offices were targeted. CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, reported that letters were sent to at least five Democratic senators’ offices, with most intercepted before delivery. The reported recipients included Delaware’s Lisa Blunt Rochester, California’s Alex Padilla, New York senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, and Connecticut Democrat Chris Murphy.

State election offices have also reported suspicious mail. Delaware’s Department of Elections said staff opened a letter containing a white powdery substance on Thursday and followed security protocols. The Oklahoma State Election Board and Louisiana’s secretary of state said their offices received letters containing white powder.

Louisiana’s office was evacuated after a staff member opened a package on Tuesday. It later reopened after law enforcement found no evidence of harmful substances. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said a letter containing white powder intended for his office was intercepted by the Postal Inspection Service. Suspicious packages were also reported at the state capitols in Albany, New York, and Cheyenne, Wyoming.

The agencies said they would continue efforts to safeguard the public and secure elections. The incidents come weeks before US midterm election day, which will determine the balance of power in Congress. Before the 2024 election, officials in 17 states received suspicious packages; a year earlier, suspicious envelopes, some laced with fentanyl, were sent to election offices in at least five states.