FBI Director James Comey has thrown the presidential election into turmoil just 11 days before Americans head to the polls, announcing that federal investigators have discovered additional emails potentially connected to Hillary Clinton's private email server.
In a letter to Congress on Friday, Comey revealed that the FBI had uncovered emails during an unrelated investigation and would examine them to determine whether they contained classified information.
However, Comey acknowledged that the FBI does not yet know whether the emails are significant or how long the review will take.
Emails Discovered During Separate Investigation
According to law enforcement sources, the emails were discovered on a computer examined during an investigation involving former Democratic Congressman Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of longtime Clinton aide Huma Abedin.
The announcement comes nearly four months after Comey publicly concluded that Clinton had been extremely careless in handling classified information but recommended against criminal charges.
Friday's disclosure does not establish that Clinton committed a crime or that the newly discovered emails contain classified information.
Trump Seizes on the Announcement
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump immediately celebrated the development, telling supporters that the controversy was potentially bigger than Watergate.
Clinton's campaign responded angrily, questioning why Comey would release such an ambiguous announcement so close to Election Day.
Campaign chairman John Podesta called the timing extraordinary and demanded that the FBI immediately provide additional details.
An Election Thrown Into Uncertainty
Comey's decision is already drawing criticism from Democrats and former Justice Department officials who question the wisdom of publicly discussing an unresolved investigation during the final days of a presidential campaign.
The FBI has provided no evidence that the newly discovered emails change its earlier conclusions.
Nevertheless, the announcement has returned Clinton's email controversy to the center of the election, giving Trump a new line of attack at a critical moment.
With just 11 days remaining, voters are now confronting a major FBI announcement without knowing what the evidence actually shows.