500 blank ballots found near Renton dumpster spark federal investigation, fraud denial
Published on April 21, 2026.
Federal authorities have taken custody of a batch of election mail found near a Renton dumpster. The discovery was made after Washington State Republican Party Chairman and state Rep. Jim Walsh posted a video on social media showing a box of outbound, unvoted ballots near a strip mall dumpster, many from 2022 to 2025. Initial findings indicate the ballots were sent to voters but never retrieved. Walsh raised concerns about potential weaknesses in Washington's vote-by-mail system, calling it a "broken chain of custody" and an "invitation to fraud". King County Elections and the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office will assist investigators as they investigate how the ballots ended up at the location.
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