White powder envelopes target over three dozen Congress members' offices as FBI investigates
More than three dozen members of the US Congress have had their offices targeted with envelopes containing white powder, less than three weeks before the 3 November midterms, as federal agents try to identify who is behind the campaign.
The latest case came on Monday, when the Leesburg district office of Virginia Democrat Suhas Subramanyam was evacuated after an envelope containing a suspicious substance arrived. He said the office was cleared quickly, adding that acts of political intimidation have no place in the country.
Subramanyam's office said preliminary tests showed the powder was not hazardous.
Law enforcement sources told ABC News that more than 100 letters thought to contain white powder are circulating in the US mail system. The FBI, Capitol police and US Postal Inspection Service are investigating, according to a notice sent to Senate staff on Thursday.
Election offices in at least 15 states had reported receiving or being targeted by suspicious mail by Thursday evening, according to the Tampa Free Press, which cited federal authorities. No suspect has been named, and federal authorities have not released a confirmed figure.
The FBI declined to confirm specific instances or letters, but said in a statement that it and the US Postal Inspection Service are investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to various addresses nationwide, including secretary of state offices and their related election offices, and congressional offices.
The statement added that some of the letters contained an unknown substance and that the agencies are working closely with law enforcement partners to respond to each incident, to identify those responsible, and to safeguard the public and secure elections for American citizens.
Senators have been targeted across the political spectrum and the country. Letters addressed to Democratic Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer and California senator Alex Padilla were intercepted by authorities, while Chris Murphy of Connecticut said the FBI, the Senate sergeant at arms and Capitol police alerted his team to a letter as well.
Republicans were also targeted, in South Dakota, Texas and Nebraska. Mike Rounds said his Sioux Falls office was evacuated, and Pete Ricketts and Ted Cruz also reported a suspicious letter.
In the House, at least 10 people were exposed after white powder was sent to the offices of New York Democrats Hakeem Jeffries, Ritchie Torres and Tom Suozzi.
In California, Jimmy Panetta said a staffer opened an envelope at his Santa Cruz office, then cleared the room and called 911, saying such attempts to intimidate would not deter them from doing their job. In Massachusetts, five staffers left Seth Moulton's Salem office while police investigated, and testing found no substances of concern.
Investigators have described several common features connecting the suspicious letters sent to public officials and election centres. The FBI has stated that the recovered envelopes were processed through a north Texas mail processing centre and carry a postmark or stamp reading 'Thinking of You'. Senate staff and House offices were warned to watch for plain white envelopes featuring these distinct markings.
The vast majority of the envelopes were intercepted by the US Postal Inspection Service and screening facilities before being delivered. In 2024, election officials were targeted in 17 states before the presidential election, and no suspect was named in that case either.
