USPS Rule on Mail Ballots Will Disenfranchise Voters

In response to Executive Order 14399, which is already being challenged, the United States Postal Service has proposed a new rule that would allow USPS to decide who may receive and cast a mail ballot.

Because voting by mail is part of the fundamental right to vote, the League of Women Voters of the United States opposes this new rule for the following concerns.

1) The Constitution gives Congress broad authority to regulate USPS, but Congress has never authorized USPS to administer elections. The proposed rule conflicts with federal law, the Constitution, and USPS’s own mandate.

2) Major nationwide changes to vote-by-mail procedures are precisely why Congress and the states—not USPS—have authority to set election rules and requirements.

3) The rule would force USPS to act as an election administrator, a role it is not equipped to perform and one that belongs to state and local election officials.

4) As a result of this rule, eligible U.S. citizens could be prevented from participating in elections.

5) The rule would place significant burdens on state and local election administrators.

6) The proposed rule is illegal and impossible to implement before the 2026 general election, only four months away.

Everyone agrees that election mail should be secure. However, these new federal requirements would create barriers that could prevent eligible voters from receiving and returning mail-in ballots in time to be counted.

The Leagues of Women Voters of Sarasota and Manatee County encourage all eligible voters to submit a personalized comment opposing this rule.

The comment period ends Thursday, July 2, at 5 p.m. ET. Your comment with the subject line “Ballot Mail” should be emailed to PCFederalRegister@usps.gov and include your name and address. Comments can also be submitted here, https://www.lwv.org/take-action/oppose-proposed-mail-and-absentee-ballot-regulations.

Ruth Harenchar, Rhonda Peters, and Vilia Johnson
President, LWV Manatee Co-President, LWV Sarasota Co-President, LWV Sarasota