Maine officials address election security after 250 ballots found in Amazon delivery
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
(ELLSWORTH, Maine) — The Maine secretary of state’s office is investigating after 250 blank election ballots were found in a resident’s Amazon order last week, saying misconduct has not been ruled out, while maintaining the safety of the state’s election process.
The same day that an unnamed resident reported the bizarre delivery, the town of Ellsworth — 40 miles away — reported 250 missing absentee ballots, according to officials.
During a press conference this week, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who is running for governor, said her office has partnered with the FBI, the U.S. Postal Service and other state agencies to lead the probe.
“This year, it seems that there may have been attempts to interrupt the distribution of ballots and ballot materials, but we are stronger and better than anyone who tries to do our elections harm. Time and time again, election officials and law enforcement rise to meet the challenges we face,” Bellows said.
“I have full confidence that law enforcement will determine who is responsible, and any bad actor will be held accountable. We will not stop until we have answers,” Bellows added.
Early in-person voting began in Maine on Monday for the Nov. 4 election, where constituents will decide on a referendum that could tighten restrictions on absentee voting in the state.
Bellows maintained the safety of this election at the press conference.
“Even if the most enterprising criminal were able to fabricate Maine ballots or Maine absentee ballot envelopes or if that chain of custody were broken, our elections would remain free, safe and secure because of the checks and balances in absentee voting itself,” Bellows said at the news conference.
Amazon told ABC News in a statement that the company is cooperating with relevant investigators on the situation.
“We’re cooperating with the law enforcement agencies investigating this incident. Based on our initial findings, it appears that this package was tampered with outside of our fulfillment and delivery network, and not by an Amazon employee or partner,” an Amazon spokesperson said.
Amazon’s initial findings match the description shared by the woman who received the blank ballots originally. She told officials that the package appeared to have been previously opened and retaped before she received it and handed it over to the Newburgh town office.
Bellows and Maine’s elections previously garnered national attention when she called for the removal of now-President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot in 2024, which was later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Allegheny Mountains (Jeff Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Rescuers are racing to find a miner who’s been trapped in a flooded West Virginia coal mine for days.
Crews are pumping out thousands of gallons of water per minute at the Rolling Thunder Mine to help locate the miner after the site flooded Saturday, according to West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey.
“Rescue operations continue at the Rolling Thunder Mine in Nicholas County, where crews are now pumping water at a rate of approximately 6,000 gallons per minute – a significant increase from earlier efforts as additional pumps became available,” Gov. Morrisey posted Tuesday on X.
“This is another step forward in the ongoing effort to reach the missing miner. As water levels continue to drop, crews are also advancing on the drilling portion of the rescue as they prepare for additional heavy equipment to arrive,” he added.
The identity of the miner has not been publicly released.
At a press conference Monday, Morrisey said dive teams were working to find pockets of air where the miner may be located.
“This has been an around-the-clock response since Saturday, and we’re going to continue to do everything imaginable to help,” said Morrisey. “We’re going to continue to push because we want to make sure that we give the miner every opportunity to live.”
Nicholas County Commissioner Garrett Cole posted a statement on Facebook Sunday night, saying that the missing miner was helping his crew escape to safety.
“According to state wide reporting, the missing miner is said to be a foreman of a crew who worked to ensure that everyone on his crew was getting out of the mine but got trapped behind,” he said.
Rolling Thunder Mine is operated by Tennessee-based Alpha Metallurgical Resources, which operates 19 underground and surfaces mines across West Virginia and Virginia, according to its website.
A spokesperson for Alpha Metallurgical Resources did not immediately respond to ABC News’ requests for comment.
The weekend episode at Rolling Thunder Mine is the second mining incident in West Virginia this month, following the death of a miner at a different mine on Thursday, according to Morrisey.
“Our coal miners are among the hardest-working and most courageous people in our state. They represent the strength, humility, and resolve that define West Virginia. We owe these men and women an enduring debt of gratitude for the sacrifices they make every day to power our communities and our nation,” Morrisey posted on Facebook.
(WASHINGTON) — The Trump administration is considering replacing senior field office leaders at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with leaders from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, according to multiple law enforcement officials.
The change would represent a shift by the administration to try and get more deportations, as the White House has been pushing for, according to law enforcement officials.
As many as 12 field office directors could be replaced by border patrol officials in the coming days, a law enforcement source told ABC News.
The field offices range from Los Angeles to Philadelphia — and all of this is spearheaded by Trump adviser Corey Lewandowski, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Commander at Large Greg Bovino.
Bovino’s tactics have drawn the ire of at least one federal judge who called him to testify about potentially ignoring a court order.
Internally at DHS, Bovino has drawn praise from senior DHS leadership. It would also be a shift for ICE — which typically keeps promotions in-house.
DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin posted on X on Monday, saying, “This is one team, one fight. President Trump has a brilliant, tenacious team led by @Sec_Noem to deliver on the American people’s mandate to remove criminal illegal aliens from this country.”
“As we said, we have no personnel changes to announce right now, but we remain laser focused on RESULTS and we will deliver,” McLaughlin added.
(NEW YORK) — The Secret Service agent who spotted Ryan Routh’s alleged sniper perch on the golf course where Donald Trump was playing last year testified at Routh’s trial Thursday that he came within five feet of Routh’s rifle before he realized Routh was armed.
Routh, who is representing himself, is on trial in Florida on charges of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump on his golf course last September.
“The barrel of the AK was pointed directly at my face,” Secret Service agent Robert Fercano testified. “I was in fear for President Trump’s life.”
The first witness called in Routh’s criminal trial, Fercano offered testimony that sheds new light on the public’s understanding of the alleged attempted assassination.
Fercano said he was serving as a site agent on Trump’s West Palm Beach Golf course that day, reviewing the hole ahead of Trump for potential threats. As he approached the sixth hole, he said he first noticed some “abnormalities” at the tree line.
“I encountered what appeared to be the face of an individual,” he said. “I attempted to initiate contact by being friendly with the individual, and said, ‘Hey.'”
Fercano said he then noticed “an object to the left of me beginning to move.”
“I heard what sounded like a groan and the subject smiled at me,” Fercano said. “My initial thought was that this was potentially a homeless person camping out.”
While Fercano said he initially thought Routh was not a threat, he stated that he then noticed an object “black in nature protruding from the fence line” when he was approximately five feet from Routh.
“Upon further scanning, I had identified the weapon to be a Soviet-style weapon,” he said. “I noticed the front sight post was facing me.”
A former Marine marksman, Fercano said the situation “appeared to be a textbook ambush scenario.”
“The barrel of the rifle was continuously moving in my direction,” he said.
Fercano said he began moving backwards and drew his sidearm. “I made the decision to fire my service weapon in the last known direction of the subject,” he said.
Jurors in the courtroom then heard a recording of the frantic radio traffic after Fercano fired.
“Mogul on five green,” Fercano was heard saying on the radio, referencing Trump’s call sign. “Shots fired, shots fired, shots fired. Individual … with a gun.”
“AK-style weapon,” Fercano was heard saying. “The individual is inside the tree line. All units be advised that looked like an AK-47 style weapon.”
Fercano testified that he prepared for a gunfight, but Routh fled the scene. He found Routh’s rifle and body armor at the location Routh had used as his perch.
At one point, prosecutors brought out Routh’s weapon — unloaded and disarmed — for the jury to see. Fercano, wearing black latex gloves, demonstrated how the rifle was positioned to the jury.
Routh leaned forward in his chair and studied Fercano and the gun while the testimony took place.
On cross-examination, Routh — who is not a lawyer and has no legal education — greeted Fercano before he began his questions.
“Good to see you sir,” Routh said. “Is it good to be alive?”
“Yes,” Fercano responded.
“Right on,” said Routh.
Throughout the cross-examination, Routh appeared to acknowledge that he was the person Fercano had spotted on the course.
“I had noticed yourself in the fence line,” Fercano told Routh.
“The defendant was fairly concealed?” Routh asked.
“Yes, you were fairly concealed,” Fercano responded.
Rough attempted to suggest that the rifle Fercano spotted was not held in a threatening manner, or that he lacked the mindset to actually fire the weapon.
“I don’t know your mindset that day, but I know you pointed [your rifle] at my face,” Fercano said.
Routh concluded the cross-examination by attempting to cast doubt on how Fercano could defend himself without wearing body armor during the incident.
“I had my wits and my service pistol,” Fercano responded.
Fercano’s testimony followed the trial’s opening statements, during which Routh was cut off by the judge.
Routh launched into a speech about the origin of the human species, global conflicts, and his political grievances, before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon cut him off after about six minutes for making arguments that she said have “absolutely nothing to do with the evidence in this case.”
“You do not have an unlimited license to go forward to make a mockery of the dignity of this courtroom,” Judge Cannon said.
Routh began his opening by contemplating how humans have gotten “derailed and so full of hate.”
“Modern trials seem to eliminate all that is human,” he told the jurors as he stood before the jury box. “What is in the heart and mind is all that matters.”
Routh then criticized U.S. foreign policy for standing by while, he said, “Putin has slaughtered 1.5 million” and “Netanyahu has killed 60,000” — arguing that the U.S. “supports his genocide.”
He also appeared to criticize Trump for “trading a war for an election” and moving the U.S. embassy in Israel.
After Judge Cannon criticized Routh for going off topic, Routh restarted his opening to encourage jurors to focus on his intent.
“This case hangs on intent. What is in one’s heart,” he said before nearly breaking into tears.
“This case means absolutely nothing. A life has been lived to the fullest,” he said before Cannon cut him off again.
Prosecutors allege that Routh put together a methodical plan — including purchasing a military-grade weapon, researching Trump’s movements, and utilizing a dozen burner phones — to kill Trump based on political grievances.
Hiding in the bushes of Trump’s Palm Beach golf course and armed with a rifle, Routh allegedly came within a few hundred yards of the then-presidential nominee before a Secret Service agent spotted his rifle poking out of the tree line.
Routh allegedly fled the scene but was later arrested by a local sheriff’s office on a nearby interstate.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John Shipley, in his opening statement, described Routh’s alleged plot as “carefully crafted” and “deadly serious” with one goal in mind.
“Last year, the defendant Ryan Routh wanted to make sure the people of this country could not elect Donald Trump,” Shipley told the jury. “The defendant decided to take the choice away from the American people.”
If it weren’t for the actions of a bystander and a Secret Service agent, Shipley said, Trump would have likely been killed last year as he approached the sixth green of his West Palm Beach golf course.
Shipley told jurors that Routh lied to his family about his whereabouts while living in his car at a gas station near Trump’s golf course. While there, Routh began “obsessively researching the movements of Donald Trump online” and put together a “gear list” that included zip ties, metal armor plates, and adult diapers, Shipley said.
The morning of Sept. 15, Routh left the gas station and took up a sniper’s perch near the sixth hole of Trump’s golf course, “where the defendant expected his target to die,” Shipley said. If it weren’t for the actions of Fercano and a bystander who identified Routh, Shipley said Trump would have likely been killed.
“If not for Agent Fercano’s actions, Donald Trump would not be alive and the defendant’s assassination plot would be successful,” he told jurors.
Nearly a year after the alleged assassination attempt, Routh faces five criminal counts that risk sending him to prison for the rest of his life. Despite lacking any legal experience, Routh dismissed his lawyers earlier this year to defend himself at trial.
“I will be representing myself moving forward; It was ridiculous from the outset to consider a random stranger that knows nothing of who I am to speak for me,” Routh told U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in a July letter. “I am so sorry, I know this makes your life harder.”
Routh’s self-representation created some issues during the three days of jury selection earlier this week. Judge Cannon — who previously oversaw and dismissed one of Trump’s criminal cases — refused to use many of his proposed jury questions, deeming them too “political.”
Among other subjects, Routh had proposed asking jurors about their stance on Palestine and Ukraine, and about Trump’s proposed acquisition of Greenland.
Routh has said in court filings that he plans to defend himself by focusing on his self-described peaceful nature and his care for humanity, in part by calling to the stand his son and multiple friends to testify about his character.
Judge Cannon has barred him from trying to argue that his alleged actions were justified, that he did not intend to carry out the assassination, or that his actions were protected by First Amendment rights.
