Hazardous substances in the mail threaten election workers’ safety

Author: Haley Zarcone Writer: Rachel Murphy
Published: Updated:

Recent incidents of suspicious mail containing hazardous substances, including fentanyl, has created concern for election workers.

“We’re definitely ready for everything in the elections world. We haven’t seen any cases of this happening in the state of Florida, so I hope this is not a concern. But we have to be prepared for just about anything,” said Melissa R. Blazier, the Collier County Supervisor of Elections.

Blazier said multiple agencies help at the local and federal levels with threats in the mail for Collier County. The offices have also been equipped with safety kits for years.

“With this scare, we have added something else to our tool kit, and that is Narcan. Should we ever need it, we have something on each floor of this building and in our other locations,” said Blazier.

Tim Guerrette is running for the Collier County Supervisor of Elections position in 2024 and wants to do more by equipping workers with gloves and masks.

“Without people coming to work and feeling safe, we want to make sure that the election process runs very smooth. If there’s any type of disruption or anything that pops up, it’s definitely going to cause a backflow or a negative impact on the election,” said Guerrette.

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