Authorities evacuated state offices in Cheyenne on Monday after the Wyoming Secretary of State’s Office received a white substance in the mail, mirroring incidents at election offices in Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska. 

Situated just north of the Capitol, the Herschler Building’s two wings house several state agencies, including the Secretary of State’s office, Wyoming Public Health Division, the State Treasurer’s Office, the Department of Education and the Department of Revenue. 

“The [Secretary of State’s] office has notified county election officials advising them to be aware of suspicious mail and to use extra precaution,” according to a press release from the secretary of state’s office. “Law enforcement is currently evaluating and investigating the incident.”

Secretary Chuck Gray was attending a legislative committee meeting in Laramie on Monday morning and told lawmakers about what had happened.  

“We just received notice that in our office … a white powder was opened in an envelope this morning,” Gray told the committee, adding that the Wyoming Highway Patrol had responded. 

In Nebraska, the suspicious substance was determined to be non-hazardous, according to a press release. 

“Authorities will turn over the envelope and its contents to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Postal Service authorities,” the press release states. “No one was harmed during the handling of the envelope and subsequent investigation.”

The Wyoming Highway Patrol did not respond to WyoFile’s request for comment by press time. 

“The governor strongly condemns any attempt to intimidate or cause real harm to elected officials,” Gordon’s spokesman Micheal Pearlman told WyoFile. He also confirmed that the FBI would be taking over the active investigation. 

“The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to election officials in several states. Some of the letters contained an unknown substance and we are working closely with our law enforcement partners to respond to each incident and safely collect the letters,” the FBI said in a written statement to WyoFile. 

“We are also working with our partners to determine how many letters were sent, the individual or individuals responsible for the letters, and the motive behind the letters. As this is an ongoing matter we will not be commenting further on the investigation, but the public can be assured safety is our top priority. We would also like to remind everyone to exercise care in handling mail, especially from unrecognized senders. If you see something suspicious, please contact law enforcement immediately.”

This story has been updated to include the FBI’s response. — Ed.

Maggie Mullen reports on state government and politics. Before joining WyoFile in 2022, she spent five years at Wyoming Public Radio.

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  1. This is another sad reminder of how lazy some of those who disagree have become. Instead of putting the work into persuasion and making their case to win the hearts and mind of folks, they seem to think that intimidation and threats will achieve their goals. How truly un-American!

    There seems to be a mistaken assumption by some folks that sending a harmless powder is not a crime. However, it *IS* a crime to send an envelope of “harmless powder” if it is intended to convey false or misleading information that could indicate the presence of a biological agent. Under 18 U.S. Code § 1038, it is a Federal offense–both criminal and civil.

    I hope the affected officials will not only encourage the FBI to charge the perpetrator criminally, but they will also sue the guilty party civilly as well. Those who seek to distort elections or election processes should be brought to justice as swiftly as possible–and with harsh penalties sufficient to dissuade others from following their lead.

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  2. Things are getting crazy. With two assassination attempts on a political candidate in the past two months, political “hate mail” spewing vitriol against other candidates, and now this, we’re seeing an alarming escalation of partisan polarization, rancor, and violence. There’s discord WITHIN the parties as well, as extremists face off against moderates. And this trend is even affecting nonpartisan races. I am a candidate for the Laramie City Council – a nonpartisan office – and have been disappointed to learn that a partisan state legislator has been organizing and campaigning for a bloc of City Council candidates who profess, in their literature, to be aligned with one political party. (Partisan support of specific candidates in nonpartisan races SHOULD be illegal, but under Wyoming law it falls into a gray area after the primary election: unethical but not outlawed.) We in Wyoming need to prevent this toxic partisanship from affecting local races and local government and continue (as is our tradition) to vote for the PERSON, not the party.

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    1. Lotsa propaganda and mind-control games floating around these days…the ruling class continues its games of control over EVERYTHING and EVERYONE, by trying its best to make us fearful of the boogieman. The goofy SOS was a perfect target for them.

      Reply