Election workers in Sandoval County found methamphetamine and fentanyl on multiple absentee ballots at the county's Bureau of Elections warehouse, and officials now say those same ballots have been cleared and are safe to handle. No poll workers or county employees were exposed to the substances during the scare, which began two weeks ago and ended this week with the ballots set to rejoin the voting process.
Drugs Found During Routine Mail Handling
The discovery happened the morning of October 16 at the bureau's warehouse in Bernalillo, according to the Sandoval County Clerk. Initial tests indicated the presence of fentanyl and methamphetamine, as reported by KOAT. Homeland Security Investigations confirmed the presence of the drugs through a swab test, and an Albuquerque Fire Rescue hazmat unit sealed the affected box before it was secured inside the warehouse, per that same report.
Local, state and federal authorities responded to the scene once the substances were detected, according to the Sandoval Signpost. A representative from the clerk's office and a sheriff's deputy were assigned to maintain chain of custody over the affected ballots, the outlet noted, a step meant to preserve the integrity of the ballots even as they sat quarantined.
About 200 Ballots Affected, Exact Count Still Unclear
Roughly 200 ballots were believed to be affected, though the precise number had not been confirmed, according to a later KOAT report. No county employees or poll workers were exposed to the substances, the Clerk's office said.
Early reporting offered conflicting signals about what would happen next. KOAT reported that voters whose ballots were spoiled might have to resubmit their votes in person or through another mail-in ballot, while the Rio Rancho Observer reported that whether ballots would need to be recast would depend on the outcome of the investigation.
Ballots Cleared, Set to Be Counted
That uncertainty has since been resolved on the question of safety, if not fully on the mechanics of counting. As reported by KRQE, the Sandoval County Clerk said the absentee ballots linked to the illicit drug contamination were deemed cleared and safe to handle. The ballots will be reintegrated into the voting process, the Clerk said, according to the station's report.
Bernalillo County, by contrast, already uses sensors designed to detect illicit substances in incoming election mail before workers ever touch it, according to KOAT, along with procedures to quarantine suspicious ballots and coordinate with emergency responders. Federal agencies have also pushed election offices to stay alert to hazardous mail: the Election Assistance Commission said worker safety is a top priority and has urged caution in handling election mail, per guidance from CISA, the FBI, the EAC and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Turnout Climbs as Early Voting Winds Down
The contamination scare landed during a heavy stretch of voting in Sandoval County. More than 17,500 voters had turned out as of 4 p.m. on October 21, accounting for about 14.63% of the voter population, according to the Rio Rancho Observer. Of those, more than 14,000 had voted early in person and more than 3,000 had voted absentee, the outlet reported, while more than 6,800 requested absentee ballots had not yet been returned, according to the Sandoval Signpost.
Similar Scares Hit Election Offices in Ohio
Sandoval County was not the only election operation dealing with a scare this month. On October 28, the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections in Ohio evacuated part of its operations center after an unidentified powder was found while processing an absentee ballot, according to Ideastream Public Media. Testing later determined the powder was non-hazardous, and the affected area reopened with no injuries reported; the early in-person voting area was unaffected because it was separate from ballot processing. Four days earlier, the Hamilton County Board of Elections was evacuated after staff found suspicious white powder in the mail, though police and hazmat crews cleared that building without any reported injuries as well.
