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Suspicious package, threatening letter sent to Ga. House candidate

by Lisa Hagen - 06/15/17 4:46 PM ET

Karen Handel, the GOP nominee in Tuesday’s highly anticipated Georgia special House election, received a suspicious package at her house one day after a shooting injured five people at a GOP baseball practice outside of Washington, D.C.

Handel’s campaign confirmed that suspicious packages were sent to Handel’s Georgia home, as well as to her neighbors. The campaign said that package contained “threatening letters and a suspicious substance.”

Breaking: #KarenHandel says she also received the letter with the powdery substance at her home. pic.twitter.com/VYwrMy7ZYz

— Mike Petchenik (@MPetchenikWSB) June 15, 2017

Breaking: Cops going mailbox to mailbox in #KarenHandel‘s neighborhood after “suspicious package” found near her home. pic.twitter.com/ZE7ND0Mtm1

— Mike Petchenik (@MPetchenikWSB) June 15, 2017

The Washington Free Beacon reported that Handel’s neighborhood has been blocked off by police, and a neighbor posted a photo of the letter calling the Georgia Republican a “dirty fascist.”

{mosads}”This afternoon we had some suspicious packages delivered to our house and to our neighbors. The packages contained threatening letters and a suspicious substance,” Handel said in a statement.

“The police were quickly notified and street is now being blocked off. We will continue to coordinate with law enforcement as necessary.”

The packages were sent five days ahead of the nationally watched House race in which Handel will square off against Democrat Jon Ossoff for the seat formerly held by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price.

About an hour after Handel’s campaign confirmed the suspicious packages, Ossoff’s campaign said in a statement that it has received threats that “have intensified in recent days.” The Georgia Democrat urged all candidates running for office to call for “calm and unity,” even amid their differences.

“Our campaign has received a number of threats, some of which have intensified in recent days, and we have reported them to local police as well as taken prudent precautions,” Ossoff said in a statement.

“These recent events speak to the need for a redoubled commitment to civility and unity,” he continued. “[C]andidates for office and elected leaders must continue to call for calm and unity, even when there are intense differences of opinion.”

The local Fox station also received an anti-Trump/anti-Handel letter with a suspicious powder, which was tested and identified as baking soda.

DeKalb Haz-Mat testing suspicious powder at @FOX5Atlanta now #fox5atl pic.twitter.com/zm6Arnq5Z2

— Mike McClain FOX 5 (@mikemcclainfox5) June 15, 2017

Unknown substance sent to @FOX5Atlanta tests as baking soda. All clear. Thanks to LEO and haz-mat teams for assistance. pic.twitter.com/U3y7BZqn9M

— Mike McClain FOX 5 (@mikemcclainfox5) June 15, 2017

Both candidates have condemned Wednesday’s shooting that injured House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and four others in Alexandria, Va. Scalise has undergone three surgeries and remains in critical condition.

In a Wednesday statement, Handel called the shooting a “despicable, unprovoked attack.” The alleged shooter had professed years of deep disgust for the Republican Party and specifically commented on Handel in a Facebook post that said she “wants people to work for slave wages,” according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“We should not allow our political differences to escalate to violent attacks,” Handel said in the Wednesday statement. “We must all refuse to allow the politics of our country to be defined in this way. Now more than ever, we must unite as a one nation under God.”

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Ossoff also sent a statement following the shooting, calling it an “appalling act of violence.”

“Despite our differences of opinion, Americans must redouble our commitments to national unity, civility, and the rule of law,” Ossoff said in a Wednesday statement.