YUBA COUNTY, Calif. — A Yuba County elections worker was exposed to a fentanyl-laced envelope, Yuba County said in a statement Wednesday.
The worker didn't touch the substance and wasn't injured. According to Yuba County, an Elections Department staff member opened an envelope at the Yuba County Registrar of Voters headquarters Tuesday and noticed a powdery substance. The mail didn't seem to be suspicious and was addressed from a verified sender, according to the county. The county referred to it earlier as a postmarked from a verified agency.
The Yuba County Sheriff’s Office did a field test, which showed it was fentanyl. It's also being sent to the Department of Justice to confirm the field test results.
“We are grateful that no one was harmed in this incident and we will continue to exercise caution as we perform the important work of conducting elections,” said Yuba County Elections Clerk-Recorder Donna Hillegass in a statement.
A slew of suspicious packages, including some laced with fentanyl, were sent to elections facilities in at least five states — including California — last November, prompting evacuations and delaying the counting of ballots in some local races. The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service had to step in to intercept such packages in the mail system. Letters intended for election offices in Sacramento and Los Angeles were among those intercepted.
Election officials and workers across the country have increasingly faced threats and harassment since former President Donald Trump and his supporters began spreading false election claims after he lost the 2020 election.
Many election offices across the United States have taken steps to increase the security of their buildings and boost protections for workers. Facing the threats of fentanyl-laced packages, some have started stocking up on naloxone, the antidote to fentanyl.
The county said in a release that elections staff recently went through training on identifying suspicious packages and handling potentially dangerous substances. The office also has Narcan available in case of a narcotic exposure or overdose.
The California Secretary of State's Office has issued an advisory to county election officials with guidance on safety protocols and coordinating with local, state and federal authorities.
“I am relieved that nobody was harmed," California Secretary of State, Shirley N. Weber said in a statement. “The response of the Yuba County Registrar’s team and Sheriff’s office minimized potential harm and ensured my office could provide immediate guidance to the state’s 57 other counties.”
The sheriff's office and other agencies are investigating.
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