On Oct. 24, an individual lit a fire inside a collection of drive-up mailboxes at USPS station in Phoenix, Arizona. According to the Phoenix Police Department, they responded to the scene at 1:20 a.m. The fire department was able to open the mailbox and extinguish the fire; although approximately 20 electoral ballots were damaged.
The individual admitted to committing arson and was arrested by the police shortly after, according to Fox News.
“Hundreds of ballots were destroyed or damaged in fires set Monday at two ballot drop boxes in the Pacific Northwest – and investigators are searching for a person they believe is responsible for both incidents,” according to CNN.
Many people who had voted in the previous days were led to wonder whether or not their votes were counted.
The statement read.
According to the article “Ballot drop box fires in Oregon and Washington are likely connected, officials say,” on NBC News, “Voters should be assured that even if their ballots were in the affected box, their votes will be counted,”
Now that the election is over, it ceases the idea of a recurrence until the next election season. Although this is true, it doesn’t mean people weren’t outraged at the issue. Not only did the fires cause strife across the United States, but it also angered certain individuals more locally.
Freshman Zakiya Webb is concerned voters’ voices were silenced.
“It still matters to me because that’s taking away some people’s rights to vote and they might feel like their voice doesn’t count,” Webb said.
According to CNN, “Officials have identified 488 damaged ballots that were retrieved from the burned ballot box in Vancouver, just across the Columbia River from Portland, and 345 of those voters already requested new ballots, according to election officials.”
Reportedly, the same man is responsible for all three attacks, occuring in Portland, Oregon, and Washington.
According to CNN, “Investigators have also linked the two most recent incidents to a third ballot box fire on October 8, also in Vancouver.”
