King County Elections officials are pushing back on claims that elections are not secure after a citizen reportedly found a box of unused ballots near a dumpster in Renton.
Washington State GOP Chairman Rep. Jim Walsh posted a video about the incident online. In the video, he explains what the citizen found and says, “This is proof Washington state elections are not secure.”
County election workers say initial findings suggest the ballots were “outbound” on their way to voters. The ballots were “unvoted,” and did not make it to their intended voters, according to the office.
The United States Postal Inspection Service has the ballots in custody and is collaborating with the Renton Police Department. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is also working on the case because the mail also included out-of-state and federal election mail, according to the elections office.
KIRO 7 asked election leaders about the claims that the situation suggested local elections were not secure.
“There is not an opportunity for fraud here,” said Kendall Hodson, Chief of Staff at King County Elections. “If the voter doesn’t receive their ballot, we’re going to mail them a replacement. That’s okay. Every ballot is uniquely tied to that voter. We’re only ever going to count one.”
Hodson added that bad actors would not be able to obtain and use the ballots either, as every signature is verified using a signature on file for voters.
The office said the Secretary of State’s Office has been actively involved in this process.
State election leaders say if undelivered ballots are discovered, they should be returned to the sender.
KIRO 7 asked Walsh what his concerns were if systems were in place to prevent fraud.
“Well, the broken chain of custody, where nobody knows where a ballot is, is a major problem,” Walsh said. “We need to do a better job of tracking the ballots’ whereabouts.”
Other King County Elections officials had harsher words for Walsh.
“This is clearly an effort to push a false narrative about elections and vote-by-mail,” King County Director of Elections Julie Wise said in a press release. “Holding onto other people’s ballots to make a public spectacle is unethical.”
Walsh responded to the criticism on Wednesday.
“I was expecting some pushback from King County elections, the Secretary of State,” he said. “That’s not surprising. They’re in damage control mode because they can’t argue with this.”
Voters are encouraged to sign up for text and email alerts within their county to easily track their ballot at each step of the process.
King County election officials urge those with concerns to take part in the election process.
Individuals can sign up to take a tour of the election headquarters here. Observers from both political parties, as well as a nonpartisan group, are also on site for every election to supervise ballot processing.
