Officials in Durham, North Carolina, are gearing up to open their new $24 million elections operations center later this year, with an added feature to ensure safety and security. The decision to include a separate mail-room exhaust system was prompted by a series of suspicious letters, some containing fentanyl, that targeted election offices across the country last year.
The heightened security concerns were felt by Derek Bowens, Durham County's elections director, who expressed fears of potential targeting due to the county's political significance. While Durham did not receive any of the threatening letters, the incident sparked mass concern among officials.
