Roughly 500 ballots stacked inside a box turned up on the ground behind a Renton strip mall in February, a find that has reignited anxiety over how Washington’s vote-by-mail system tracks returned ballots. The ballots span election cycles from 2022 through 2025 and include many from the 2024 general election, with many reportedly still sealed. After saying he got little response from election offices, the man who discovered the box says he handed it over to the Washington State Republican Party.
Rep. Jim Walsh, who chairs the state Republican Party, said his team opened some envelopes and described many of the ballots as blank. He argued the discovery revealed a “broken chain of custody” and called it “an invitation to fraud,” while stopping short of alleging direct wrongdoing. Walsh said his office plans to review the envelopes and run forensic scans to try to piece together how the ballots ended up behind a dumpster, as reported by KOMO.
How ballots are checked in King County
In King County, trained Elections staff compare the signature on each ballot return envelope to the signature on the voter’s registration record. Any envelope with a mismatched or missing signature is flagged and set aside for further review. Voters who receive a signature challenge are mailed a Signature Resolution Form and can resolve the issue online, by mail or in person. The county also follows up by phone and email to help cure problems. That signature verification process is required by state law and is designed to keep improperly returned ballots from being counted, according to King County Elections.
Investigation under way
King County Elections told reporters it had no record of being contacted about the discarded box and said that, had it been notified, the office would have asked that the ballots be returned so officials could investigate. Instead, the agency has now referred the matter to law enforcement, the U.S. Postal Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. State election officials also pointed to King County’s signature checks and outreach as safeguards. Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, quoted in coverage of the discovery, said “Washington elections are safe and secure” and urged anyone who finds undelivered election material to report it directly to election officials rather than posting it online, as reported by KOMO.
How to check your ballot
King County voters who are worried about whether their ballot was received can sign up for ballot alerts and use the county’s ballot-tracking tools, or call Elections at 206-296-VOTE (8683) or email [email protected] for help. The county’s website explains how to resolve a signature challenge and how to confirm whether a returned ballot was accepted, according to King County Elections.
Investigators have not said whether any votes were altered, and election officials emphasize that signature verification and voter outreach are meant to catch problems before ballots are counted. The discovery has already been pulled into broader debates about mail-in voting safeguards. For now, officials say they are following standard investigative steps and urging anyone with information to contact authorities and election offices directly.
