Ballots burned, vote center vandalized in possible acts of election interference, Los Angeles County officials say

Ballots were found burned and a voting center in Long Beach was vandalized in what could be two separate acts of attempted election interference ahead of the June 2 primary election, the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder announced Sunday.

The burned ballots were discovered inside an official ballot drop box at the Department of Public Social Services-Civic Center in Los Angeles, during routine ballot collections, according to the county registrar-recorder.

“Staff identified a limited number of vote-by-mail ballots that appeared to have sustained fire-related damage,” the county registrar-recorder said.

The fire happened sometime between the last ballot collection on Saturday and first ballot collection on Sunday, resulting in a “small number” of affected ballots, officials said.

On Sunday morning, vandalism was found at the voting center in Cesar E. Chavez Park in Long Beach. Election workers responded and voting operations were not disrupted, according to the county registrar-recorder.

The county registrar-recorder said that it is “carefully reviewing both incidents and working to identify any voters who may have been affected.”

Voters whose ballots were affected by the fire will be contacted directly and given information on how to recast their vote. Replacement ballots are a possibility, the county registrar-recorder said.

The county registrar-recorder has filed reports with the Los Angeles Police Department following the incidents. Los Angeles County Clerk Dean Logan issued a statement Sunday reminding the public that attempts to disrupt voting, damage election infrastructure, interfere with voters, or vandalize election facilities “will not be tolerated.”

“Our responsibility is to protect voters and ensure every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast a ballot,” Logan said. “Any attempt to interfere with voting or election operations is taken seriously. We will continue working closely with law enforcement and other partners to safeguard the voting process and ensure voters can participate with confidence.”

The public is encouraged to report any suspicious activity involving election materials, election facilities, or voting operations to the county registrar-recorder by calling (800) 815-2666.