Karen Handel (YouTube)
With less than one week remaining until Election Day in Georgia’s 6th congressional district, the campaign for the vacant House seat has taken an alarming turn.
Neighbors near Republican candidate Karen Handel’s home in Roswell, Georgia alerted authorities when a white powdery substance was found inside of envelopes that were placed in mailboxes June 15. The substance was reportedly found with an anti-Handel letter.
Police responded to the area and were seen going from mailbox to mailbox in the neighborhood to ensure safety and that the substance wasn’t harmful.
Handel herself said that she was a recipient of one of the letters.
Breaking: #KarenHandel says she also received the letter with the powdery substance at her home.
The same envelope was sent to Fox 5 Atlanta and tested as baking soda, Mike McClain tweeted after a hazmat team investigated.
Unknown substance sent to @FOX5Atlanta tests as baking soda. All clear. Thanks to LEO and haz-mat teams for assistance.
Roswell Police continuously “flooded” the area throughout the day as they investigated the incident.
A neighbor in the area posted a photo to Facebook of the letter that was allegedly found in her mailbox. The letter contained extremely vulgar language in direct reference to Handel and her campaign.
(Facebook)
The Handel campaign responded to the reports and said that they were cooperating with law enforcement in the area.
On June 20, voters in the district head to the polls to select who they want to represent them in the House after former Rep. Tom Price was confirmed as the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
But some doubted the credibility of the alarming development in Handel’s neighborhood. New York Post columnist John Podhoretz wasn’t having any of it. He surmised that the substance and letter that was found inside of the mailboxes was a “total fake” and done by Republicans to “discredit Ossoff” days before the election.
Ossoff, a first-time politician, has led in the polls ever since he and Handel emerged from the first round of voting April 18. But those polling figures have started to tighten in recent weeks, and it seems as if the runoff is a virtual toss up.
Early voting in the district ends June 16, so both campaigns have placed an emphasis on getting voters out to the polls before June 20. And it’s seemed to work well.
Early voting data provided by Georgia’s Secretary of State office showed that 111,545 votes have already been cast in the race as of June 14, quite a substantial figure.
#GA06 early vote (in-person and mail) update: 111,545 voted as of 6/14
The race has garnered much national attention as it’s seen by many as a referendum on President Donald Trump and his policies.
Members of both parties have sensed the importance of the House seat and have funneled in historic amounts of money — over $40 million.