- The United States Postal Service strongly recommends that Americans who vote by mail in November request their ballot at least 15 days before the election.
- “We recommend that jurisdictions communicate immediately and advise voters to request ballots as soon as possible, but no later than 15 days before the election date,” the Postal Service told Fox News.
- Although nearly half of the states allow voters to request ballots by mail within one week of the election, election officials and the USPS recommend that voters mail their ballots at least one week after the election.
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The United States Postal Service strongly encourages voters to request their ballots by mail for the November 3 general election at least 15 days in advance, if not more, due to the expected significant increase in vote by mail.
“We recommend that jurisdictions communicate immediately and advise voters to request ballots as soon as possible, but no later than 15 days before the election date,” the Postal Service told Fox News in a statement.
Currently, seven states and the District of Columbia will send all or most registered voters a ballot by mail for the 2020 election and 35 more will allow all voters to cast a ballot by mail without an excuse beyond fear of COVID -19, according to an analysis by the Washington Post.
While eight states are ready to mail ballot requests to all or most voters, election officials and experts have previously told Insider that with less than 100 days until the election, voters must request their ballots as soon as possible. possible to reduce pressure on local election officials and increase the chances that your ballot will arrive on time.
Voters can now apply for their November ballots in 45 states, according to VoteAmerica nonprofit voter education and assistance, and officials are encouraging voters to do so as soon as they can, preferably weeks in advance.
Currently, 32 states require mail ballots to arrive on Election Day (or the day before), while 18 states and the District of Columbia allow ballots to arrive after Election Day to count if they are postmarked. on or before the day of the election, according to VoteAmerica.
The Washington Post has reported that the agency’s new postmaster general has issued a new guide to mail carriers to prioritize the delivery of business packages over regular mail. Postmen are now instructed to drop off mail that is not delivered on their routes to a distribution center that will be delivered the next day instead of taking overtime, a move that could severely hinder the timely delivery of mail, including the voters.
Although nearly half of the states allow voters to request ballots by mail within one week of the election, both election officials and the USPS recommend that voters plan at least a 14-day round trip for your ballot to go home and return to the elections office to be counted.
“Customers who choose to vote through the US mail must understand their local jurisdiction’s requirements for timely submission of absentee ballots, including postmark requirements,” the USPS told Fox.
