Feds investigating suspicious letters sent to election officials and congressional offices

Updated on: October 15, 2026 / 12:52 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington — Federal investigators said Wednesday that they are looking into "suspicious" letters mailed to state election officials and congressional offices, some of which contained unknown substances.

The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the "suspicious mailings," according to Brendan Donahue, the deputy chief inspector at the USPIS. Donahue told reporters that some letters have contained an unknown substance and that they were sent to "various addresses nationwide," including "secretary of state offices and the related election offices."

"We are committed to protecting our nation's election officials from threatening and dangerous mail. Any threat or attack on an election official is unacceptable," Donahue said. "Our partners, including the FBI and we at the Postal Inspection Service, will bring all of our resources to bear on these investigations."

The Senate sergeant at arms also issued a notice to congressional staff informing them of the investigation. The message, which was obtained by CBS News, said congressional offices were among those who received the suspicious letters.

A spokesman for Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said his office was one of those targeted.

"Sen. Murphy's office was sent a…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/world/