By Martha Bellisle
Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. — A group of hooded and masked people broke dozens of windows and spray painted anti-government graffiti on the Multnomah County Elections building in what Portland police called an “orchestrated attack.”
The attack happened just before 2 a.m. Monday and suspects fled as police arrived at the office, which was not occupied at the time, police said.
“It indicates, or demonstrates, what I would consider to be an orchestrated attack on this building,” Portland Police Chief Bob Day told reporters at a press conference. “It’s about eight to 10 folks. They were on scene for probably two minutes. So they definitely showed up with a plan ... and were gone just as quickly just after they did the damage.”
The graffiti was anti-establishment and anti-government, he said.
“At this point we are not suggesting that this was directly related to the inauguration,” he said, referring to President Donald Trump’s swearing in Monday as the 47th president of the United States. “It’s important to remember that we have seen these types of attacks regardless of who’s in office.”
Police had made no arrests as of Tuesday morning, but were circulating surveillance video and urging anyone with information to contact officials.
In one video, about eight people wearing gray hoodies, face masks, and carrying backpacks walk up, pull spray paint containers out of bags and write on the building. Others carrying plastic bags that appear to contain heavy objects slam them against the windows, causing them to shatter.
In another video, four people wearing the same clothing approach the outside of the building. Three were carrying plastic bags and a fourth had some sort of hammer. They walk along the sidewalk and smash window after window before running back down the street.
The damaged windows were boarded up as of 9 a.m. Monday and the office was open for business as usual Tuesday, Denis Theriault, spokesperson with the Multnomah County Communications Office, said in an email.
“Nothing like this has happened before in the 17 years I’ve been with Multnomah County,” Elections Director Tim Scott told the AP in an email. A contractor has been hired to measure the windows, with hopes to replace them by next week, he said.
The county’s security team is working with Portland Police to investigate, officials said.
Meanwhile, police are still investigating an attack on a ballot box in October. An incendiary device was set off, destroying ballots about a week before Election Day. The early morning fire was extinguished quickly thanks to a suppression system inside the box. Two more fires in ballot boxes in Vancouver, Washington, damaged hundreds of ballots during the 2024 election.
The devices were made of a “ very volatile mix” of thermite and scrap metal, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigations.