Roseville, California

Election offices in more than two dozen states, plus numerous members of Congress, have received suspicious letters containing a white powdery substance in the days before the midterms. Tennessee, Ohio, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Oregon officials reported intercepted or opened packages, some prompting evacuations and hazmat responses; preliminary tests have found no hazardous material. Affected lawmakers include Sens. Alex Padilla, Ted Cruz, Amy Klobuchar and Chris Murphy, and several California representatives. The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Capitol Police are investigating. Election official associations condemned the threats. Similar mailings targeted officials ahead of the 2024 election and in 2023, when some contained traces of fentanyl.

Two Michigan residents face terrorism charges in separate cases involving threats against elected officials, Attorney General Dana Nessel's office announced.

Anthony Dekinderen, 61, of Lake Orion, allegedly emailed a Michigan journalist threats to kill members of the Michigan Supreme Court, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. He faces nine counts of false report or threat of terrorism, each punishable by up to 20 years in prison, and was arraigned September 19 with bond set at $5 million, requiring GPS monitoring if posted.

Alicia Choucair, 33, of Roseville, is accused of threatening a dispatcher with violence against Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud unless "her people" were kept out of the city. She faces two counts of false report or threat of terrorism, a computer crime count, and a hate crime charge, and was arraigned September 17 with bond set at $20,000.

Nessel, who created the state's Hate Crimes and Domestic Terrorism Unit in 2019, said threats against officials are becoming more common and will be prosecuted fully. Both defendants await probable-cause conferences.