A suspicious package delivered to U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal's Seattle office Friday triggered a hazmat response and a precautionary evacuation of part of the downtown building, though no injuries were reported and the envelope was never opened. Jayapal said in a statement that she and her staff were safe and following protocol as crews investigated.
“My office today received a suspicious package,” Jayapal said, condemning the incident and adding that she would provide updates as they became available, according to KIRO 7. The Seattle Fire Department responded to reports of a potentially hazardous substance on the second floor of a commercial building in the 2000 block of Sixth Avenue, the same block that houses Jayapal's Seattle office, as reported by KING 5. Fire officials did not explicitly connect their response to Jayapal's office, and Jayapal's own statement did not specify which office within her operation received the package.
Envelope Never Opened, Substance Still Unknown
Hazmat crews responded to the suspicious envelope in the mailroom of the downtown office building, according to FOX 13 Seattle. The building's second floor was evacuated as a precaution, and no injuries were reported. The envelope itself was never opened — it was instead turned over to U.S. Postal Service inspectors for further investigation.
It remains unknown what substance, if any, was found inside the package, the station reported. Seattle Fire said hazmat crews investigated the impacted area and determined at 3:26 p.m. that it was safe to occupy again, with the broader timeline described elsewhere as roughly 3:30 p.m. Friday.
Part of a Wider Pattern of Mail Threats
Jayapal's office is not the only target in what has become a sprawling federal investigation. Authorities nationwide are investigating suspicious mail sent to congressional and election offices across the country, and the FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are leading that probe, according to NBC News. The mailings have reached at least 26 state election offices and at least 22 offices of congressional Democrats, the outlet reported, and investigators have not yet traced the letters' exact origins or identified who is responsible.
No connection between the nationwide mailings and the package sent to Jayapal's office has been confirmed in information released so far. Separately, komonews.com reported that more than 100 letters may be circulating in the U.S. mail system, with suspicious mail turning up in at least 19 states, and that the wave of mailings arrived less than three weeks before Election Day amid years of rising threats against election workers, according to NBC News.
Other Incidents Across the Region and Country
Just a day earlier, law enforcement intercepted a letter containing white powder addressed to the Washington Secretary of State's elections division in Olympia, komonews.com reported. A separate suspicious letter containing white powder also prompted a partial evacuation on the 32nd floor of Seattle's Henry M. Jackson Federal Building. The same report noted similar mailings have prompted evacuations at election offices in Louisiana and Oklahoma this week.
The U.S. Postal Service also intercepted a package containing white powder intended for the Ohio secretary of state's office, while testing in Wisconsin found that powder in a letter sent to that state's Elections Commission was not hazardous, per the same komonews.com account. It echoes a pattern from 2023, when election offices in six Washington counties received envelopes containing white powder that Thurston County officials said presumptively tested positive for fentanyl, with no injuries and no disruption to election operations. Suspicious mail has turned up in at least 19 states.
For now, the story around Jayapal's office remains unresolved. The substance has not been identified, Seattle Fire has not named it in its updates, and Jayapal said she would share further information as it becomes available.
