Undelivered Ballots Found in Seattle Dumpster Prompt Re-Issuance and Investigation

King County Elections reported that two bins of mail containing 92 absentee ballots were recovered from a dumpster at Golden Gardens Park in Seattle. The ballots had not been delivered to voters and therefore were not used in the current general election. All affected voters have been issued replacement ballots, and the incident has been forwarded to the U.S. Postal Service for investigation.

Seattle Times

Mail-theft incidents involving ballots are rare, according to King County Elections chief of staff Kendall Hodson. Earlier in the year, a similar cache of ballots was discovered in a Renton dumpster, and a 2024 fire damaged hundreds of ballots in a Vancouver, Wash., ballot box. Governor Bob Ferguson has offered the Washington National Guard to serve as an “Election Neighborhood Watch” during voting, a measure previously employed after the 2024 ballot-box fire.

Seattle Times

Kendall Hodson emphasized that the ballots were “undelivered” and that verification procedures—such as signature matching—would reject any fraudulent attempts to cast them. He noted that ballots are not typical targets in mail-theft cases, which is why the stolen items were discarded. Governor Ferguson reiterated that participation by the National Guard would be “inconspicuous” and left the decision to county auditors.

Seattle Times

• 92 absentee ballots recovered.

Seattle Times

• Prior incidents: a handful of ballots found in a Renton dumpster and a 2024 fire that damaged several hundred ballots in Vancouver, Wash.

Seattle Times

• “Whether to accept this offer is your decision,” — Gov. Bob Ferguson — Gov. Bob Ferguson

Seattle Times