USPS Inspector General Gives Dire Mail-In Ballot Warning

Another concern has emerged regarding mail-in voting as the presidential election nears.

An audit by the U.S. Postal Service revealed that the agency failed to deliver political and election mail 2 to 3 percent of the time, according to Just The News.

The Postal Service’s chief watchdog also warned that some ballots might be delayed or not counted in the upcoming election.

“We found that Postal Service personnel did not always comply with policy and procedures regarding all clear certifications, Election and Political Mail logs, and audit checklists,” stated the Postal Service Inspector General in the report. “Additionally, we identified processes and policies that could pose a risk of delays in the processing and delivery of Election and Political Mail.

“Furthermore, we identified issues related to some Delivering for America operational changes that pose a risk of individual ballots not being counted,” the report added.

The watchdog mentioned that recommendations were made to improve mail-in ballots, but USPS managers disagreed with two of the solutions.

“Opportunities exist for the Postal Service to improve readiness for timely processing and delivery of Election and Political Mail for the 2024 general election,” noted the report.

Just The News reported:

The inspector general assessed the Postal Service’s compliance with its election mail requirements during the early primary elections from Dec. 1, 2023, to April 1, 2024.

The audit found that although the mail service is committed to timely delivery, not all employees at 15 mail processing facilities and 35 delivery units adhered to the rules and procedures. “We found 12 of 15 (80 percent) mail processing facilities did not complete all clear certifications according to policy” that ensures political mail is processed by daily deadlines, the report indicated.

As a result, the audit discovered “between two and 220 ballots at the seven facilities after completion of the all clear process.”

Overall, ballots to voters were processed on time only 97.01 percent of the time on average, while ballots returned to election counting centers were processed 98.17% of the time, the IG reported.

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to Texas voting rules allowing seniors to automatically vote by mail but not younger people.

Older voters can request an absentee ballot for any reason in Texas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee. In other states, older voters can only do this under certain conditions.

Similar to a previous challenge to Indiana’s voting laws in 2021, the court on Monday declined to hear an appeal from three Texas voters. Additionally, it twice declined to hear earlier versions of the Texas lawsuit filed by the Texas Democratic Party during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The challengers argued that the 26th Amendment prohibits age-based discrimination, which is what the unequal treatment of voters amounts to.

Ratified in 1971 to lower the voting age to 18, the amendment states the right to vote “shall not be denied or abridged … on account of age.”

“Whatever voting rights a state grants to people aged 65 and over, it must also grant to people under 65,” the Texas voters argued in their unsuccessful appeal to the Supreme Court.

They sought to overturn an appeals court decision that Texas’ rules are legal since making it easier for some people to vote doesn’t make it harder for others.

Additionally, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled that the right to vote did not include the right to vote by mail when the 26th Amendment was enacted.

Most states either mail ballots to all voters or allow any resident to request an absentee ballot.