Election offices in U.S. targeted by bomb threats amid vote counting

Election offices in Maryland and California received bomb threats recently, leading to building evacuations. These threats came while officials were counting mail-in ballots from Tuesday’s election. 

Even though the scary situation, officials said everyone was safe, and investigations were underway.

In Maryland, on Friday, bomb threats were made to election offices. Jared DeMarinis, the State Administrator of Elections, said some buildings had to be evacuated. 

He called the threats “cowardly” and said counting of ballots would continue the next day. “Safety is a top concern, but we WILL resume canvassing tomorrow,” he posted on social media. He assured the public that these threats would not stop the election process.

One of the bomb threats was made to the Baltimore County Board of Elections office. The Baltimore County Police Department said the threat came through email. Police investigated and found no explosives. 

They posted on social media that the threat was a hoax, and everything was safe.

In California, bomb threats were also made. In Orange County, the registrar of voters office in Santa Ana received a bomb threat. The building was evacuated, and bomb-detection dogs were brought in. After searching the building, no explosives were found. Officials confirmed that work would go back to normal the next day.

In Riverside County, the central counting office was also evacuated due to a bomb threat. A bomb squad investigated and found no explosives. The office was cleared, and the normal work schedule would continue.

Governors from both Maryland and California, Wes Moore and Gavin Newsom, said they were watching the situation closely. They were working with local officials to make sure the election offices stayed safe.

These bomb threats came after a busy election day. On Tuesday, Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, defeated Kamala Harris, the Democratic Vice President, in the presidential race. While the presidential race was decided, votes in other local and congressional races were still being counted.

The FBI reported that similar threats were made at polling locations in five battleground states on Election Day. These threats were mostly sent from email addresses that seemed to come from Russia. However, Russia has denied being involved in these threats.

Before the election, many officials were worried about disruptions caused by false information and conspiracy theories about the voting process. Local and federal officials worked together to make sure both voters and election workers stayed safe during this time.

The FBI is investigating these threats, urging people to remain calm as they search for the person or group behind them. Even though no explosives were found, these events are raising concerns about how misinformation can impact elections.

Election officials in Maryland and California are committed to finishing the vote count and making sure the election process is fair. “Cowardly threats,” DeMarinis said, “will not stop us from doing our job.”