Suspicious letters sent to polling stations and government buildings in six states this month are undeniably frightening, some containing traces of fentanyl or white powder, accompanied by barefaced threats and dubious political symbols.
Recalling the anthrax attack that killed five people in 2001, the mailer prompted election officials frustrated by ongoing harassment and threats to contact local police, fire and health departments for help stocking up on the overdose-reversing drug naloxone.
While there are some risks from side effects with synthetic opioids, having an antidote on hand isn’t a bad idea amid an addiction epidemic that kills more than 100,000 people in the US each year — and it could provide some reassurance for stressed-out workers’ votes, election managers said.
King County Elections headquarters began stocking Narcan, a nasal spray version of the overdose reversal drug naloxone, after receiving mail laced with fentanyl over the summer.AP
“My team is usually on a roll just because we’re opening thousands or millions of ballots depending on the election,” said Eldon Miller, who leads the ballot opening staff at King County Elections in Seattle, which stocks up on naloxone after receiving a string of mail. fentanyl in August. “I always say to my team, your safety is the most important thing to me.”
The letters were sent this month to polling places or government buildings in six states: Georgia, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington and Kansas. Some were intercepted before they arrived, but others were sent, causing evacuations and briefly delaying the counting of votes in local elections. The FBI and US Postal Inspection Service are investigating.
Some letters feature antifascist symbols, the pride flag of progress and the pentagram. Although the symbol is sometimes associated with leftist politics, it has also been used by conservative figures to label and stereotype the left. The sender’s political leanings are unclear.
A pack of Narcan is pictured at the first aid station at the King County Elections headquarters, Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, in Renton, Wash.AP
Fentanyl, an opioid that can be 50 times stronger than the same amount of heroin, is prompting an overdose crisis because it is pressed into pills or mixed with other drugs.
Briefly touching it should not cause an overdose, and researchers found the risk of fatal overdose from accidental exposure to be low, unlike powdered anthrax which can float in the air and cause fatal infections when inhaled.
Election workers across the country have been besieged by threats, harassment and intimidation since former President Donald Trump and his supporters began spreading false election claims after he lost the 2020 election.
“I hope we encourage people not to hurt election officials,” said Ann Dover, director of elections in suburban Atlanta’s Cherokee County, which did not receive any suspicious mail. “Many people left the field. It’s not just the threat of physical harm. There was a lot of emotional and psychological abuse.”
Poll opener Eldon Miller works at King County Elections headquarters, Friday, Nov. 17. 2023, in Renton, Wash. AP
Dover contacted officials this month to fire the officers who provided Narcan, the nasal spray version of naloxone. Naloxone is available over the counter, is given to people of all ages and does not harm people who do not have opioids in their system.
His office is also taking new precautions with mail: leaving it in a designated place and assigning one person to open it wearing gloves and a mask.
Lane County, Oregon, which received suspicious letters, will provide naloxone kits and train election staff to administer them. Neither did Lincoln County, Nevada, which didn’t get it.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office said this week it would provide naloxone to any of the state’s 159 counties after intercepted letters en route to election officials in Fulton County, Atlanta, tested positive for opioids.
Condemning the letter, Raffensperger noted one of his sons died of a fentanyl overdose about five years ago: “We know how dangerous this substance is.”
Several letters, including those sent to King and Pierce counties in Washington state, bear striking similarities to those King County received when counting votes in this year’s August primary.
The incident prompted King County Elections to obtain naloxone, though the antidote was not needed then nor when its Renton office received a second fentanyl-laced letter this month.
“We felt it was a good idea to be on hand for all kinds of scenarios today,” King County Elections spokeswoman Halei Watkins said. “We have them in several places in the building, and include them with first aid and emergency kits that go to our off-site polling stations.”
Halei Watkins, communications manager for King County Elections, poses for a portrait in the mail room at election headquarters, on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, in Renton, Wash.AP
Maya Doe-Simkins, co-director of Remedy Alliance/For The People, which was launched last year to provide low-cost or free naloxone to community-based harm reduction programs, said the government should focus more on providing them with the antidote. who work with people who may overdose.
There is no shortage of naloxone, which is available online and at some pharmacies, but its distribution leaves something to be desired, Doe-Simkins said.
“It’s a colossal misuse of resources to spend money to make sure election officials have naloxone,” Doe-Simkins said, especially because “the actual appropriate, evidence-based intervention for naloxone distribution is underfunded and underresourced.”
Chris Anderson, supervisor of elections in Seminole County, Florida, said his office has not received any envelopes containing fentanyl in the mail, but obtained several doses of Narcan this month from the fire department, which said it has plenty of supplies.
“We can immediately save lives with them,” Anderson said. “I appreciate the advice we’ve been given from medical professionals, and we certainly will do everything we can to avoid having to use Narcan, but in a situation where it’s needed, I’d rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. “
In Tacoma, Washington, Pierce County Auditor Linda Farmer said her office obtained naloxone after nearby King County’s experience in August. The office received a threatening letter this month containing baking soda and took the opportunity to reiterate that naloxone is available.
“We reminded staff last week of where to look for it,” Farmer said.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
