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Washington legislators push bill making it a felony to threaten election workers

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Washington legislators push bill making it a felony to threaten election workers

The Washington state Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to make harassing election workers a felony, three months after four county election offices received envelopes containing suspicious powder — including three testing positive for fentanyl — and had to be evacuated.

“This cannot be something we take as normal,” Democratic Sen. Manka Dhingra said during the vote. “We have to make sure that our election workers are protected, that people who participate and engage in our democracy have faith that the system works well and that we don’t have bad actors that can actually disrupt vote counts.”

COAST GUARD LAUNCHES WHALE SIGHTING ALERTS IN SEATTLE SO BOATS WILL STEER CLEAR

The bill is among a wave of legislation across the U.S. seeking to boost protections for these workers in the lead-up to the 2024 election amid an increasing number of threats some attribute to false claims by former President Donald Trump and his allies that the 2020 election was stolen.

Twenty-three states are considering bills addressing protections, according to the nonprofit advocacy group Public Citizen. In Maryland, for example, lawmakers are considering legislation to enable authorities to prosecute people who threaten to harm election officials or their immediate family members.

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The bill in Washington would increase the possible penalty for harassing an election worker in person or by mail from up to one year in jail to up to five years in prison. It would also give targeted workers the opportunity to join a program run by the secretary of state’s office designed to keep their address confidential.

Erik Thurston prepares ballots from a drop box for the sorting machines on Election Day at the King County Elections headquarters, Nov. 7, 2023, in Renton, Wash. The Washington state Senate has voted Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024 to make harassing election workers a felony. The decision comes three months after several county election offices received envelopes containing suspicious powders and had to be evacuated. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

The measure has already been approved by the House but will need to go back to that body for verification before heading to Gov. Jay Inslee’s desk. Mike Faulk, spokesperson for the Democratic governor, said in an email that they haven’t reviewed the bill in detail but that Inslee is “generally supportive of efforts to protect our democratic process and the people who carry it out.”

Some Republican lawmakers pushed for the bill to include protections for election observers and people gathering initiative signatures.

“They are physically, I would say, unprotected,” Republican Sen. Keith Wagoner said during a vote on an amendment to protect people collecting signatures. “They’re not inside impressive looking buildings like some of our elected election folks are. They don’t have access to security, but they are vulnerable.”

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The amendments were voted down, with Dhingra explaining that individuals collecting signatures are already protected under a harassment statute.

The legislation comes two years after the state made online harassment of an election worker a felony. Democratic Rep. Mari Leavitt, sponsor of the latest bill, said it will better align the punishment for in-person and virtual threats.

“Our election workers are unsung heroes,” she told The Associated Press. “They’re workers of democracy and we need to demonstrate to them that we value them and we want them to show up to work and feel safe, and this is one method to be able to do that.”

In November, four county elections offices in Washington were evacuated the day after election day after receiving envelopes with powder and a message that said, “End elections now.” Three tested positive for fentanyl, according to a spokesperson for the Washington secretary of state.

Linda Farmer, auditor for Pierce County, where one of the elections offices was evacuated, said she remembers over 100 workers being evacuated that morning and hazmat teams along with the FBI and fire department swarming the area, while paramedics made sure the staff member who opened the letter was safe.

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“It was terrifying,” she said. “I was nauseous and really scared for the staffer who had opened the letter, but I put on a brave face for the staff.”

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San Francisco, CA

The final Jordan Mason trade results are in

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The final Jordan Mason trade results are in


The 2026 NFL Draft is here. While the San Francisco 49ers were loaded with capital last offseason, they made a number of trades with their picks this year. They moved their fifth-round pick for Bryce Huff, their sixth-round pick for Brian Robinson Jr., and their seventh-round pick for Khalil Davis.

San Francisco even got additional capital from the Jordan Mason trade last offseason, where they acquired a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick from the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for the running back.

However, they also moved that sixth-round pick during the season for New England Patriots defensive lineman Keion White.

With the draft here, let’s go back and revisit that Mason trade with all of the moving pieces.

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Original terms of the Jordan Mason trade

  • Minnesota Vikings receive: RB Jordan Mason
  • San Francisco 49ers receive: 2025 fifth-round pick (No. 160 overall) and 2026 sixth-round pick (No. 198 overall).

What did the 49ers do with the picks from the Jordan Mason trade?

San Francisco used the first of the two picks on Kansas State safety Marques Sigle last offseason.

Then, as mentioned above, they traded the second of the two picks for defensive line help, acquiring Keion White at the trade deadline from the New England Patriots.

Who won the Jordan Mason trade?

This is still a wait-and-see, as both of the 49ers contributors still have time to develop in San Francisco.

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Sigle was a contributor as a rookie for the 49ers, playing 15 games while making seven starts. He had 52 tackles, two pass breakups, and one tackle for loss.

While there were certainly flashes from the rookie safety, including his closing speed and willingness to hit, there were also some major learning moments that showed Sigle wasn’t quite ready to start last year. He’s still got a ways to improve in coverage and with his tackling, which will be points of emphasis this season.

Still, there’s the potential there to be a starting safety for the 49ers in the future.

White, on the other hand, was arguably San Francisco’s most disruptive pass rusher last year, at least on the interior after coming in during the trade deadline. He was a versatile piece, being used both on the edge and the inside, and had 24 pressures in 11 games, ranking third overall on the team.

White’s 12.5 percent pass rush win rate was third among defensive linemen behind Yetur Gross-Matos and Bryce Huff, and he also had more than one year of team control.

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He’s got a cap hit of just $1.8 million for the upcoming year, and should fit in better in more of a rotational role for the 49ers this season.

Jordan Mason was a key piece for the Vikings last year, emerging as their starter, as he rushed for 758 yards and six touchdowns on 4.8 yards per carry. He was better than the 49ers No. 2 running back last year, but the two-year, $10.5 million price point was likely too high for San Francisco.



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Denver, CO

New Broncos TE Justin Joly posts welcome message

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New Broncos TE Justin Joly posts welcome message


New Denver Broncos tight end Justin Joly posted his first message to Broncos fans after being selected 152nd overall in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL draft on Saturday.

Joly (6-3, 241 pounds), a sure-handed receiving tight end will join Evan Engram, Adam Trautman, Lucas Krull and 2025 seventh-round pick Caleb Lohner ahead of team activities in May, and training camp in July. Joly has the ability to fight through contact to make a contested catch, but has average speed, and needs to develop as a blocker.

Joly sent a message to fans shortly after being drafted. “Job not finished let’s do it ya,” tweeted Joly.

Joly joins a loaded Broncos roster which fell four points short of a Super Bowl appearance, and is poised to go even further in 2026.

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Welcome to Denver, Justin! We’re glad to have you.

Social: Follow Broncos Wire on Facebook and Twitter/X! Did you know: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.



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Seattle, WA

Seattle Mariners Win a Home Run Derby vs St. Louis Cardinals 11-9

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Seattle Mariners Win a Home Run Derby vs St. Louis Cardinals 11-9


If you ask starters Matthew Liberatore and Bryan Woo, Saturday’s Cardinals versus Mariners game did not go according to plan as both teams launched 8 home runs in total, but Seattle ended up with more runs on the scoreboard winning 11-9.

The Seattle Mariners struck first when Julio Rodriguez crushed a ball into Big Mac Land after Cal Raleigh singled giving the Mariners a 2-0 lead. That lead didn’t last long as JJ Wetherholt turned on the 2nd pitch he saw and hit a no-doubt home run into the right field stands for his first-ever leadoff homer.

The very next pitch would also become a souvenir, this time in the left field stands, as Ivan Herrera also went yard tying the game at 2-2.

The 2nd inning was equally exciting as Garver reached on an infield single for the Mariners and he scored when Will Wilson hit a 2-run shot making it 4-2 Seattle. That lead was cut in half in the bottom of the 2nd inning when Nathan Church turned a Bryan Woo pitch into an extra ball for the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen to play around with.

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The Cardinals pulled even in the bottom of the 3rd inning when Jordan Walker lined a hard single to right field followed by Nolan Gorman doing the same. Walker would score on a bloop single by Masyn Winn that likely should have been a double as the ball landed just barely fair and then bounced up against the netting and then falling back into the field of play. Winn thought it was a ground rule double but the ground rules said it was a live ball. Fortunately Nolan Gorman did advance to third on the play and then he scored on a sacrifice fly by Nathan Church giving the Cardinals the lead 5-4. Winn would score on a 2-run home run by Pedro Pagés who yanked a ball just to the right of the left field foul pole making it 7-4 St. Louis.

Batting practice would continue into the 4th inning when Cole Young (you guessed it) hit a home run to draw the Mariners closer at 7-5 which inspired manager Oli Marmol to bring in Gordon Graceffo with just one out in the 4th inning. Matthew Liberatore’s line for the day was a mere 3 1/3 innings giving up 8 hits including 3 that left the yard and 5 earned runs. Graceffo was able to shut down Seattle by getting Cal Raleigh to hit into a double play. Woo was pulled after just three innings giving up 9 hits and 7 earned runs. He was replaced by Ferrer who started the Cardinals part of the 4th inning allowing a hit to JJ Wetherholt and then hit Ivan Herrera with a pitch, but Burleson, Walker and Gorman were unable to add to the Cardinals lead.

Seattle would reduce the St. Louis lead to just one in the top of the 5th inning when Rodriquez reached on a bloop single. He stole second and was then moved over to third on a ground out to the right side by Naylor. Randy Arozarena brought him in on a sacrifice fly to center making it 7-6 Cardinals. The Mariners would nearly tie the game with one out in the top of the 6th inning when Garver would hit a ball off of reliever George Soriano that would have cleared the left field wall if not for the heroic effort of Nathan Church who made an amazing grab. Young would hit a double high off the center field wall over Victor Scott II and he would score on a single by Wilson tying the game 7-7.

Nathan Church would untie the game in the bottom of the 7th inning when he slammed his second home run of the game after Masyn Winn singled to left giving the Cardinals a 9-7 lead.

Pedro Pagés would leave the game with possible hamstring trouble after beating out an infield single after Church’s home run.

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JoJo Romero got into all kinds of trouble in the 8th inning giving up singles to Young and Garver. Rivas laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to third to move both of them over. Marmol then brought in Riley O’Brien to try and slam the door on the Mariners, but instead the door flung wide open when Connor Joe singled them both in tying the game 9-9. O’Brien would also give up a single to Julio Rodriguez making it first and third for the Mariners, but he would get Naylor to fly out to deep right to end the top of the 8th.

The bottom of the 8th inning was a strange one for Jordan Walker. After getting hit on the top of the hand by a pitch that looked painful, he was called out trying to steal 2nd base when he somehow failed to slide, but instead awkwardly stumbled over the base. The Cardinals appealed the call, but Walker did appear to get tagged during his epic non-slide maneuver.

The game would go off-the-rails for the Cardinals in the top of the 9th inning when the Mariners would load the bases on a bunt single by Crawford, a walk to Garver and a hit-by-pitch for Young. Rivas untied the game by singling off of Riley O’Brien giving Seattle an 11-9 lead. Matt Svanson was brought in to keep the Mariners from adding to their lead. He retired Connor Joe on a lineout to right center, but then walked Raleigh to load the bases again, but he was able to strikeout Rodriguez to close out the top of the 9th inning with no further damage done.

Seattle brought in their closer Andrés Muñoz to finish off the Cardinals in the bottom of the 9th. After walking Nolan Gorman, he struck out Masyn Winn and got a double-play getting Nathan Church to ground out as Nolan Gorman was tagged out to end the game.

The St. Louis Cardinals will try to salvage a game in the short homestand series versus the Mariners on Sunday as Michael McGreevy gets the start for St. Louis while Emerson Hancock will pitch for Seattle. First pitch scheduled for 1:15pm Sunday at Busch Stadium.

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