The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Capitol Police are investigating a wave of letters containing “suspicious substances” mailed to congressional offices and election administrators across the country, the Senate Sergeant at Arms told lawmakers Thursday in a notice obtained by The Associated Press.
Recipients are being told to treat the mailings as potentially hazardous. The probe comes with Election Day three weeks away, at a moment when secretaries of state are already managing absentee ballots, early voting sites and heightened security around tabulation centers.
What election offices have reported
State officials in Louisiana and Oklahoma said their offices received envelopes with unknown powdery material this week. Louisiana State Police said an employee in the secretary of state’s election division opened a package, found white powder and was taken to a hospital as a precaution; testing did not show harmful substances, according to a police spokesperson.
Oklahoma officials reported a similar mailing. Ohio’s secretary of state said U.S. Postal Service investigators intercepted a package before it reached Columbus. NBC News reported that election-related offices in at least those three states were targeted, while the FBI declined to confirm individual locations in a statement to reporters.
In a joint statement, the FBI and Postal Inspection Service said they were “investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to various addresses nationwide, including Secretary of State offices and their related election offices.” Some letters contained an unknown substance, the bureau said, and agents are working with partners to respond to each incident and identify who sent them.
Congress and off-site screening
On Capitol Hill, senior congressional staff received a memo saying law enforcement is trying to intercept additional letters but that some may still arrive. POLITICO reported that mail to House and Senate offices typically passes through off-site screening, so it remained unclear Thursday how many pieces had reached member suites.
The national associations representing secretaries of state and state election directors expressed concern about the mailings in a letter Wednesday, warning that threats against election workers have become routine in recent cycles.
What happens next
Federal officials have not identified a suspect or motive. Substances recovered in Louisiana were submitted to an FBI laboratory for analysis. Election officials said operations continued, though several offices temporarily cleared staff while hazmat teams worked.
With absentee and early voting underway in many states, the investigation adds another layer of physical security to a season already shaped by litigation over ballot access and protective details around local canvassing boards. The Sergeant at Arms notice urged offices to follow existing mail-handling protocols and to report anything unusual immediately.