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The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) is searching for a suspect with a 鈥渨ealth of experience in metal fabrication and welding鈥� connected to three arsons at ballot boxes in the city and in Vancouver, Washington.

Mike Benner with PPB made the announcement at a news conference on Wednesday, adding that investigators believe the suspect is a white man, in his 30s to 40s, with a thin face and bald head or short hair. An early 2000s Volvo was spotted approaching one of the drop boxes shortly before the fire, police previously announced. KOIN in Portland reported authorities believe the S-60 sedan is dark-colored with a tan interior and may also be missing a Volvo emblem.

Previous coverage: Incendiary attacks on ballot drop boxes in Washington, Oregon spark election security concerns

Earlier in the day, The New York Times and multiple other media outlets reported that pro-Palestinian messages were discovered on the devices used to burn the ballot boxes, but that investigators were not sure whether the suspect was truly an activist or someone trying to cause chaos.

“It鈥檚 difficult to determine what the motive is on this,” former King County Sheriff John Urquhart told 成人X站 Newsradio. “At this point, until (investigators) really catch the suspect, we鈥檙e not going to know.”

On Monday morning, a fire erupted at a ballot drop box in Portland and then shortly after at another drop box in Vancouver. Police said they believe the incidents are connected but did not reveal what evidence links them.

Urquhart stressed that any suspected motive 鈥� including the reported 鈥淔ree Gaza鈥� marking 鈥� will not impact the professionalism from the team of investigators, which includes PPB, Vancouver Police Department, FBI and other agencies.

鈥淓ven if it鈥檚 true, it鈥檚 not going to change the way these crimes are being investigated 鈥� they鈥檙e very serious crimes, they strike the heart of democracy,鈥� he said.

Hundreds of ballots were damaged from the Vancouver drop box, and officials said they are working on contacting the voters to inform them. Officials said only three ballots from the Portland drop box were damaged.

In response, elections officials in King, Pierce and Thurston Counties have all pledged to increase the frequency of ballot pickups at their boxes.

鈥淐onstructed of steel, weighing in at over 1,000 pounds, with no pry points and multiple locking mechanisms, and equipped with fire stops, official ballot drop boxes are a secure and convenient way for voters to return their ballot,鈥� an emailed statement from King County Elections read.

King County Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall said deputies on patrol have been briefed about drop box locations.

County Council member Reagan Dunn quickly called for action to address voting safety issues.

“When we go to an all-mail election, like we have in King County, it means that the drop boxes are even more important,” he told 成人X站 Newsradio. “We鈥檝e also made sure that the security within those boxes themselves is at least industry-standard or better. It鈥檇 be really hard to throw an incendiary device into our drop boxes.”

In Pierce County, Auditor Linda Farmer said elections workers will now be picking up ballots on Sunday, in addition to daily pickups leading up to November 5.

鈥淥ur ballot drop boxes are identical to the ones that Multnomah County (Oregon) has,鈥� Farmer said, noting the shared fire suppression systems that may have saved hundreds of ballots in Portland. 鈥淚n fact, they took the lead from us on those drop boxes and ordered from the same company.鈥�

That company, her office said, is Puyallup-based LaserFabUSA, which supplies the VoteArmor line of boxes to King County, too.

鈥淲e have every expectation that if somebody tries to start a fire that it will be quickly extinguished,鈥� Farmer said.

Other news: Allegations former Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz 鈥榰ntruthful鈥� with investigators

Thurston County Auditor Mary Hall said the same fire suppression technology is in their boxes, too.

鈥淭his weekend, we are adding extra ballot pickup routes to ensure your ballots are collected safely and promptly,鈥� Hall wrote in the press release. 鈥淔urthermore, on election night, our ballot drop box collection teams will be followed by Thurston County Sheriff Deputies to provide added security.鈥�

While Washington and Oregon are not considered swing states, the race for Washington鈥檚 3rd House District 鈥� which includes Vancouver 鈥� could decide which party controls the House of Representatives.

鈥淭his close to this highly contested election, it鈥檚 concerning,鈥� Urquhart said.

鈥淒on鈥檛 let this dissuade you from voting, the fact that maybe something bad may happen to your ballot,鈥� he added. 鈥淏ecause chances are that鈥檚 not going to happen. There鈥檚 several million that are going to be cast. We鈥檝e lost 400 that probably can be reconstructed. That part鈥檚 a good thing if they have the ability to do that.鈥�

Sam Campbell is a reporter, editor and anchor at 成人X站 Newsradio. You can read more of Sam鈥檚 stories聽here. Follow Sam on聽, or聽email him here.