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Oregon and Washington vote on election eve, surveillance footage of ballot box arson released
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Oregon and Washington vote on election eve, surveillance footage of ballot box arson released

VANCOUVER, Wash. (KPTV) – Newly released security camera footage shows the arson of ballot boxes in Vancouver.

Last week, a driver set fire to a ballot box at the Fisher’s Landing Transportation Center. Hundreds of ballots were destroyed.

In the video, a dark vehicle pulls up to the ballot box, sticks a device to the outside of the ballot box and drives away. Moments later, an explosion occurs.

Law enforcement told FOX 12 on Oct. 28 they were thinking arson Vancouver has been linked to a similar ballot box explosion in Portland.

Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey called it “a direct attack on democracy.”

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Authorities believe the fires at the Vancouver and Portland polls are linked. On Monday afternoon, they released a photo of a suspicious car.

Dozens of voters stood in line at the Clark County elections office Monday evening. Some were there to replace damaged ballots, while others said that due to security concerns following the arsons, they wanted to drop off their ballots directly at the office.

“We don’t want to put it in a ballot box, because we don’t really feel like it’s very safe or secure,” one voter said.

“I didn’t want my vote burned, preferably,” another voter said.

Kimsey said last week’s arson didn’t stop people from submitting their ballots.

“The rate of people casting their ballots at the polls was higher than four years ago, during the same period of the presidential election,” Kimsey said.

“I just think people said, ‘You know what, you’re not going to oppose the way we vote,'” Kimsey said.

The Clark County Election Office encourages all voters to check the status of their ballot online and obtain a replacement ballot if necessary.

Polls in Washington close at 8 p.m. on Tuesday.