Northern Idaho election proceeds after bomb scare

SANDPOINT, Idaho — A bomb threat Monday in northern Idaho during a training session for election workers forced them to evacuate a building with 22,000 ballots, but it isn’t adversely affecting Tuesday’s voting, the Bonner County clerk said. Clerk Marie Scott said the ballots were never out of sight of election workers, and she received the OK from the Idaho secretary of state’s office to proceed with the election after reporting what happened. “The integrity of the ballots was never jeopardized,” Scott said. Police told the Bonner County Daily Bee that Robin Ann Eby, 45, called in the bomb threat to avoid her sentencing hearing in a felony drug possession case Monday afternoon at the Bonner County Administration Building. Eby tried to call the newspaper with the threat, police said, but she misdialed and called an assisted living facility at about 1 p.m. Workers there called authorities, who immediately ordered the evacuation of the building. Scott said she was conducting a training session for 66 election workers when the order to evacuate came in. Workers evacuated — making sure to bring the ballots with them. “There were never any ballots that were unattended at any time,” she said. “They were placed in the respective vehicles under lock and key.” She said there was no question of leaving the ballots behind when the evacuation order came in. “If the building did go up, I had an election to conduct today,” she said Tuesday. “Where am I going to get new ballots in 24 hours?” She said when the all clear was given, the election workers returned to the building to complete their training. “Things are running real smooth today,” she said.