Early voting in U.S. states, 2020
This article is part of a series on the
Politics of the
United States
Federal government
Legislature
Executive
Judiciary
Elections

  • National Elections
  • Elections by State and Territory
Political parties
Political ideologies
Federalism
Foreign relations

Postal voting played an important role in the 2020 United States elections, with many voters reluctant to vote in person during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[1] The election was won by Joe Biden, the Democratic candidate. The Republican candidate President Donald Trump made numerous false claims of widespread fraud arising from postal voting, despite nearly-universal agreement to the contrary, with overwhelming amounts of supporting evidence, by the mainstream media, fact-checkers, election officials, and the courts.[2][3][4][5][6][7]

A record number of voters, in excess of 65.6 million, cast postal votes.[8][9] The Postal Service handled approximately 135 million pieces of election-related mail between September 1st and November 3rd of 2020, delivering the vast majority of these materials on time.

Background

As of July 2020, five states—Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah and Washington—hold elections almost entirely by mail, with Hawaii and Utah adopting full vote-by-mail elections in 2020.[10] Postal voting is an option in 33 states and the District of Columbia. Other states allow postal voting only in certain circumstances, though the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 has prompted further discussion about relaxing some of those restrictions. In the run up to the 2020 United States presidential election, then-President Donald Trump repeatedly asserted that mail-in voting would result in widespread fraud, and indicated that he would block necessary funding for the postal service. Among other things, this funding would have been used to ensure that mail-in votes were processed securely[11] and on time.[12] In September 2020, the Homeland Security Department issued an intelligence bulletin asserting "Russia is likely to continue amplifying criticisms of vote-by-mail and shifting voting processes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to undermine public trust in the electoral process."[13]

The Election Advisory Commission and National Conference of State Legislatures have published information on the staffing, equipment, space and procedures needed to handle large increases in postal ballots.[14][15]

The National Vote at Home Institute, which advocates postal ballots and is led by former Denver elections director Amber McReynolds, analyzed all states in 2020[16] and found that 32 states "are missing major pieces of policy or best practices that ensure a secure mail ballot process such as a sufficient data integrity process, signature verification processes and/or a signature deficiency cure process."[17] Among these 32 states, 15 lack steps to verify voters' addresses before mailing them ballots, 17 states do not mandate a signature verification process, and 30 do not have adequate options to cure defects in voter signatures.[17] Often voters have no way to cure signature mis-matches.[18]

Chart about July 2020 survey on chances of voting by mail in November election[19]

In June 2020, Pew Research Center found that only 20% of all voters nationally said they had experience voting by mail, and only 2% to 8% had voted by mail in the states that have required reasons in the past.[20]

According to a 2020 study, Democratic and Republican voters became increasingly polarized on their support for postal voting during the coronavirus pandemic.[21]

Allegations of fraud

In March 2020, President Donald Trump stated during a Fox News interview that a Democratic funding proposal to expand absentee voting during the pandemic “had things — levels of voting that, if you ever agreed to it, you’d never have a Republican elected in this country again.”[22]

In May 2020, Trump began to claim that postal voting was highly vulnerable to fraud, stating that postal ballots will be "substantially fraudulent. Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed".[23] Republican politicians are divided on the issue, with some making similar claims about fraud, while others – including a considerable portion of Republican senators – have disavowed Trump's claims.[24][25][26] Fact checkers say there is no evidence of substantial fraud associated with mail voting.[27][28]

On July 30, 2020, President Trump suggested postponing the 2020 presidential election based on his unsubstantiated claims about extensive postal voting fraud.[29][30][31][32] Article II, Section I, Clause IV of the Constitution gives Congress the sole power to determine the date of election day; 3 U.S.C. § 1 currently establishes November 3 as the election day.

On September 2, Donald Trump suggested that people in the state of North Carolina should vote twice in November's election, both in person and by mail, and so commit voter fraud.[33]

In a September 2, 2020 CNN interview, attorney general Bill Barr asserted the Justice Department had indicted a Texas man for fraudulently completing 1,700 mail-in ballots. There was no such indictment, and the matter actually involved a series of errors by election officials during a county election, rather than fraud. Barr also repeated his concerns that foreign adversaries could flood the country with counterfeit ballots to disrupt the election, a threat that experts characterized as nearly impossible to execute. Days earlier, multiple senior American intelligence officials said there was no evidence any foreign powers intended to manipulate mail-in voting. On the day after Barr's interview, the Homeland Security Department issued an intelligence bulletin asserting "Russia is likely to continue amplifying criticisms of vote-by-mail and shifting voting processes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to undermine public trust in the electoral process."[34][35][36][13] In a subsequent September 2020 interview, Barr stated that mail-in voting meant “we’re back in the business of selling and buying votes” including “outright coercion, paying off a postman, here’s a few hundred dollars, give me some of your ballots.”[37]

At a White House news conference on September 23, 2020, after a journalist asked Trump to commit to "a peaceful transferral of power," he responded: “Get rid of the ballots and you’ll have a very peaceful — there won’t be a transfer, frankly. There will be a continuation.” The New York Times interpreted this as a reference to mail-in ballots specifically.[38] Ellen Weintraub, commissioner of the Federal Election Commission, tweeted in response: "In case anyone is unclear on the concept, in the United States of America, we do not 'get rid of' ballots. We count them. Counting the ballots – *all* the ballots – is the way we determine who leads our country after our elections. The only way."[39] (As for Trump's suggestion that the transfer of power might not be peaceful, Sen. John Cornyn said the comment was inappropriate, Sen. Ben Sasse said it was "crazy stuff," and Sen. Mitt Romney said it was "unthinkable and unacceptable." All three are Republicans.)[40]

Court decisions

On September 30, 2020, federal judge Dana Christensen denied a request from the Trump campaign to block voting by mail in Montana, characterizing the campaign's claims that mail-in ballots would cause widespread voter fraud as "fiction."[41] After Christensen's ruling was upheld by a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Montana Republicans appealed to the Supreme Court, but their petition was rejected by justice Elena Kagan.[42]

Minnesota's Secretary of State announced that ballots postmarked before Election Day that arrived by November 10 would still be counted. However, with just days before Election Day, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled ballots that arrived after 8:00 PM on Election Night would have to be ‘segregated, pending a legal challenge about whether they could be counted’.[43][44] At the time almost 400,000 absentee ballots in Minnesota that had been requested were yet to be returned.[43] The change had been challenged by two Minnesota Republicans whom Brasel ruled “are in danger of creating confusion rather avoiding.”[45] On October 11, federal judge upheld a lower court ruling that allowed Minnesota to accept absentee ballots received past 8:00 PM election night.

In September 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court extended the deadline for accepting mail-in ballots and allowed them to be deposited in dropboxes.[46] Republicans asked the United States Supreme Court to issue a stay against the deadline extension, which the Court denied on October 19.[47] Pennsylvania Republicans then asked the Court to fast-track the request to block the deadline extension, but on October 28 the Court declined to hear the appeal before the election.[48]

On October 28, the Supreme Court denied a request from Republicans and the Trump campaign to allow ballots to be received up to three days after election day in North Carolina, rather than the nine day limit that had been set by the State Board of Elections amidst the pandemic.[49]

On November 4, federal judge Emmet G. Sullivan ordered Louis DeJoy to ″sweep″ USPS facilities for undelivered mail-in ballots and immediately deliver any they find. When DeJoy failed to comply, Sullivan announced that DeJoy would have to be ″deposed″.[50][51][52][53][54] Following the court-ordered sweeps, approximately 1,700 ballots were found in Pennsylvania and about 500 were found in North Carolina.[55] Federal court filings on November 5 reported that, the previous day, USPS had processed over 9,000 ballots in the Nevada Sierra district in Nevada; nearly 6,000 ballots in the Greensboro and Mid-Carolinas districts in North Carolina; and nearly 7,000 ballots in multiple Pennsylvania districts.[56] At the time, the election outcomes in these states were still considered too close to call.[57]

Postal service crisis

See also: 2020 United States Postal Service crisis

In April 2020 Trevor Potter, the former chair of the Federal Election Commission stated "there's a real possibility that people will be afraid to vote on Election Day and won't have alternatives" due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[58]

In July 2020, the administration of the United States Postal Service, including a bipartisan Trump-appointed Board of Governors and Board-appointed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, instituted cost-reducing measures that resulted in slower delivery of mail. This caused fear that, due to the phenomenon of electoral blue shift, Democratic ballots might not be delivered in time to be counted.[59][60] Election expert Edward Foley expressed concern that the blue shift phenomenon, along with difficulties caused by conducting an election during a pandemic, could lead to "a perfect storm" in the 2020 presidential election.[61] Foley's concern was particularly pronounced due to the fact that incumbent president Donald Trump had not stated whether or not he would accept the results of the election.[62]

The following month, Donald Trump stated that he opposed funding USPS because it would enable greater access to mail-in voting.[63] Reacting to this sentiment, former president Barack Obama accused Trump of trying to "actively kneecap the Postal Service".[64] The Postal Service warned voters in 46 states that it could not guarantee that all ballots cast by mail in the 2020 election would arrive in time to be counted.[65] For this reason, election experts advocated that postal ballots be mailed weeks in advance of election day.[59] Alternatively, Jamelle Bouie of The New York Times argued that Democrats should, if able, vote in person.[66]

On September 17, 2020, federal judge Stanley Bastian issued an injunction against the USPS's cost-reducing measures, ruling that Trump and DeJoy were “involved in a politically motivated attack on the efficiency of the Postal Service,” adding that the 14 states requesting the injunction “demonstrated that this attack on the Postal Service is likely to irreparably harm the states’ ability to administer the 2020 general election.”[67]

Postal Service performance in the 2020 election

A March 2021 report from the Postal Service's inspector general found that the vast majority of mail-in ballots and registration materials in the 2020 election were delivered to the relevant authorities on time.[68][69] The Postal Service handled approximately 135 million pieces of election-related mail between September 1st and November 3rd, delivering 97.9% of ballots from voters to election officials within three days, and 99.89% of ballots within seven days.[68][70]

Drop-off boxes

On October 5, Texas governor Greg Abbott issued a proclamation limiting each county to one dropbox for mail-in ballots.[71] Federal judge Robert Pitman blocked Abbott's order on October 9.[72] The next day, Texas attorney general Ken Paxton appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals for an emergency stay of Pitman's ruling, which a three-judge panel temporarily granted on an administrative basis pending further review.[73] A Texas state judge also blocked Abbott's order on October 15, and a state appeals court upheld that decision on October 23, taking the case to the Texas Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of Abbott on October 27.[74][75]

An effort by the Trump campaign and Republican Party to have ballot dropboxes declared unconstitutional in Pennsylvania was blocked by federal judge Nicholas Ranjan on October 10.[76]

The California Republican Party directed its voters to return their ballots to unofficial drop-off boxes.[77] While the party claims this is permitted under a 2016 ballot collection law, Secretary of State Alex Padilla issued a cease-and-desist order; the party said it would not comply.[78][79]

There have been multiple instances of ballot boxes being set on fire which are being investigated as potential arson:

Deadlines

2020 Postal Voting Deadlines (All times are in the local time zone unless stated otherwise)
State Postmarked By Received By
Alabama November 2[82] November 3 at 12:00 p.m.[82]
Alaska November 3[83]
Arizona November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[84]
Arkansas November 3 at 7:30 p.m.[85]
California November 3[86] November 20[86]
Colorado November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[87]
Connecticut November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[88]
Delaware November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[89]
Florida November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[90]
Georgia November 3 (Military/overseas: November 6)[91]
Hawaii November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[92]
Idaho November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[93]
Illinois November 3[94] November 17[94]
Indiana November 3 at 12:00 p.m.[95]
Iowa November 2[96] November 9 at 12:00 p.m.[96]
Kansas November 3[97] November 6[97]
Kentucky November 3[98] November 6[98]
Louisiana November 2 at 4:30 p.m.[99]
Maine November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[100]
Maryland November 3[101] November 13 at 10:00 a.m.[101]
Massachusetts November 3[102] November 6[102]
Michigan November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[103]
Minnesota November 3[104] November 10[104]
Mississippi November 3[105] November 10[105]
Missouri November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[106]
Montana November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[107]
Nebraska November 3 at 8:00 p.m. CST / 7:00 p.m. MST[108]
Nevada November 3[109] November 10[109]
New Hampshire November 3 at 5:00 p.m.[110]
New Jersey November 3[111] November 10 at 8:00 p.m.[111]
New Mexico November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[112]
New York November 3[113] November 10[113]
North Carolina November 3[114] November 6 at 5:00 p.m.[114]
North Dakota November 2[115]
Ohio November 2[116] November 13[116]
Oklahoma November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[117]
Oregon November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[118]
Pennsylvania November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[119] November 6 at 5:00 p.m.[119]
Rhode Island November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[120]
South Carolina November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[121]
South Dakota November 3[122]
Tennessee November 3 at 8:00 p.m. EST / 7:00 p.m. CST[123]
Texas November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[124]
Utah November 2[125] November 16[125]
Vermont November 2 at 5:00 p.m.[126]
Virginia November 3[127] November 6 at 12:00 p.m.[127]
Washington November 3[128]
West Virginia November 3[129] November 8[129]
Wisconsin November 3 at 8:00 p.m.[130]
Wyoming November 3 at 7:00 p.m.[131]

See also

References

  1. ^ Brent Kendall; Alexa Corse (October 11, 2020), "Pennsylvania, Texas and Ohio See Court Rulings Over Mail Ballots", Wall Street Journal, Both political parties are mounting legal challenges across many states, with mail-in voting at the center
  2. ^ Young, Ashley (2016-09-23). "A Complete Guide To Early And Absentee Voting". Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  3. ^ Farley, Robert (2020-04-10). "Trump's Latest Voter Fraud Misinformation". FactCheck.org. Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  4. ^ "Donald Trump suggests delay to 2020 US presidential election". BBC News. 2020-07-30. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  5. ^ Morello, Carol (November 4, 2020). "European election observers decry Trump's 'baseless allegations' of voter fraud". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on November 5, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  6. ^ Cillizza, Chris (May 26, 2020). "Here's the *real* reason Donald Trump is attacking mail-in ballots". CNN. Archived from the original on July 30, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  7. ^ Haberman, Maggie; Corasaniti, Nick; Qiu, Linda (June 24, 2020). "Trump's False Attacks on Voting by Mail Stir Broad Concern". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 29, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  8. ^ McDonald, Michael (23 November 2020). "2020 General Election Early Vote Statistics". electproject.github.io. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  9. ^ DeSilver, Drew (10 November 2020). "Most mail and provisional ballots got counted in past U.S. elections – but many did not". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  10. ^ Wise, Justin (July 30, 2020). "FEC commissioner to Trump: 'No. You don't have the power to move the election'". TheHill.
  11. ^ "Trump blocks postal funds to stymie mail-in voting". BBC News. August 13, 2020.
  12. ^ "US Postal Service warns of risks to mail-in votes". BBC News. August 15, 2020.
  13. ^ a b Zachary Cohen (3 September 2020). "Intelligence bulletin warns Russia amplifying false claims mail-in voting will lead to widespread fraud". CNN.
  14. ^ "Voting by Mail/ Absentee Voting". US Election Assistance Commission. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
  15. ^ "What to Consider When You're Expecting More Absentee Voting". www.ncsl.org. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
  16. ^ Hindi, Saja (2020-05-24). "The president says all-mail ballots benefit Democrats and lead to rampant voter fraud. Colorado says no". Retrieved 2020-06-18.
  17. ^ a b "Vote at Home Policy Actions: 1 and 2 Stars" (PDF). National Vote at Home Institute. May 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-06-06. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
  18. ^ "Verification of Absentee Ballots". National Council of State Legislators. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  19. ^ David Lazer; et al. (30 July 2020), Report #7: Update on Vote by Mail, State of the Nation: A 50-State COVID-19 Survey, COVID-19 Consortium for Understanding the Public’s Policy Preferences Across States
  20. ^ This is consistent with postal ballots being 25% of all ballots if Pew defined voters as voting age population, not all of whom voted in 2016. "As states move to expand the practice, relatively few Americans have voted by mail". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  21. ^ Lockhart, Mackenzie; Hill, Seth J.; Merolla, Jennifer; Romero, Mindy; Kousser, Thad (2020-10-06). "America's electorate is increasingly polarized along partisan lines about voting by mail during the COVID-19 crisis". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 117 (40): 24640–24642. Bibcode:2020PNAS..11724640L. doi:10.1073/pnas.2008023117. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 7547252. PMID 32963092.
  22. ^ Bump, Philip. "Analysis | Trump just said what Republicans have been trying not to say for years" – via www.washingtonpost.com.
  23. ^ Steinhauser, Paul (2020-05-26). "Trump charges voting by mail will result in 'rigged election'". Fox News. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  24. ^ "Trump's war against mail-in voting lacks Republican allies". CNN. 23 June 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
  25. ^ "Heavily Republican Utah likes voting by mail, but national GOP declares war on it". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  26. ^ Watkins, Matthew (2020-05-22). ""This is a scam": Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick calls it laughable for people under 65 to fear voting in person". Texas Tribune. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  27. ^ Farley, Robert (2020-04-10). "Trump's Latest Voter Fraud Misinformation". Retrieved 2020-06-12.
  28. ^ Yen, Hope (August 8, 2020). "AP FACT CHECK: Trump misleads on mail ballots, virus vaccine". AP News. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  29. ^ "Trump floats delaying election despite lack of authority to do so". CNN. 30 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  30. ^ "Trump Suggests Unprecedented Delay to November Election — But Congress Sets the Date". www.nbcnewyork.com. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  31. ^ "Trump floats idea of delaying election, congressional Republicans reject idea". Reuters. 30 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  32. ^ "Trump floats delaying 2020 election". Politico. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  33. ^ "'Vote twice', Trump tells North Carolina voters". BBC News. 2020-09-03. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
  34. ^ Zapotosky, Matt. "Barr claims a man collected 1,700 ballots and filled them out as he pleased. Prosecutors say that's not what happened" – via www.washingtonpost.com.
  35. ^ Daniel Dale, Tara Subramaniam and Holmes Lybrand (3 September 2020). "Fact-checking Attorney General William Barr's claims on voter fraud, election interference and Jacob Blake". CNN.
  36. ^ "Intel officials contradict Trump on voting by mail". POLITICO.
  37. ^ "Bill Barr Pushes 'Wild' and 'Fanciful' Felonious Postman Hypothetical, Says Liberals Are the Ones Projecting 'Bullsh*t'". 15 September 2020.
  38. ^ Crowley, Michael (2020-09-23). "Trump Won't Commit to 'Peaceful' Post-Election Transfer of Power". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-24.
  39. ^ Harvey, Josephine (2020-09-24). "FEC Commissioner Has News For Trump: We Do Not 'Get Rid Of' Ballots". HuffPost. Retrieved 2020-09-24.
  40. ^ Manu Raju, Clare Foran and Jeremy Herb (24 September 2020). "GOP downplays Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transition of power: 'The President says crazy stuff'". CNN. Retrieved 2020-09-24.
  41. ^ "Federal Judge Calls Trump's Voter Fraud Claims a 'Fiction,' Denies Campaign's Attempt to Restrict Mail-In Voting". 30 September 2020.
  42. ^ "Justice Kagan Rejects Republicans' Request to Stop Montana from Mailing Ballots to All Eligible Voters". 9 October 2020.
  43. ^ a b Youde, Jeremy (2021-01-21). "America's pandemic election". Australian Journal of International Affairs. 75 (2): 121–128. doi:10.1080/10357718.2021.1875985. ISSN 1035-7718.
  44. ^ "Federal judges order Minnesota's post-Election Day ballots to be held". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  45. ^ "Trump-Appointed Judge: Minnesota Republicans 'Are in Danger of Creating' Election 'Confusion' at the Eleventh Hour". 12 October 2020.
  46. ^ Gringlas, Sam (17 September 2020). "Pennsylvania Supreme Court Extends Vote By Mail Deadline, Allows Drop Boxes". NPR.org.
  47. ^ Reporter, Ariane de Vogue, CNN Supreme Court (19 October 2020). "Supreme Court rejects GOP attempt to require mail-in ballots be received by Election Day in Pennsylvania". CNN. ((cite web)): |first= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  48. ^ Liptak, Adam (October 28, 2020). "Supreme Court Won't Speed a Do-Over on Pennsylvania's Ballot Deadlines". The New York Times.
  49. ^ Reporter, Ariane de Vogue, CNN Supreme Court (28 October 2020). "North Carolina can count votes received 9 days after Election Day, Supreme Court rules". CNN. ((cite web)): |first= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  50. ^ Cheney, Kyle. "'Someone may have to pay a price': Judge lashes Postal Service for defying ballot order". POLITICO. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  51. ^ "Emmet Sullivan Orders USPS to Sweep Facilities for Ballots". Law & Crime. 2020-11-03. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  52. ^ Shamsian, Jacob. "Federal judge says he'll force USPS Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to show up in court and explain what happened to mail-in voting". Business Insider. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  53. ^ Pulver, Kevin Johnson and Dinah Voyles. "Judge 'shocked' USPS disregarded order for postal inspectors to search for undelivered ballots". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  54. ^ "Judge orders further sweeps of Postal Service facilities for undelivered ballots". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  55. ^ Shepardson, David (2020-11-06). "U.S. Postal Service delivered 40,000 votes nationwide Thursday - lawyer". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
  56. ^ Wagner, Meg (5 November 2020). "USPS processed thousands of ballots yesterday in battleground states". CNN. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  57. ^ Wagner, John; Sonmez, Felicia (5 November 2020). "Election 2020 live updates: Trump says 'STOP THE COUNT' as Ariz., Nev., Pa., N.C. and Ga. continue tallies". Washington Post. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  58. ^ Williams, Pete (April 1, 2020). "Election Chaos: Coronavirus Fear of Voting Could Keep People from the Polls". NBC News. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  59. ^ a b Berman, Russell (2020-08-14). "What Really Scares Voting Experts About the Postal Service". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  60. ^ Lalljee, Jason (July 31, 2020). "Union warns of U.S. Postal Service cost cuts as states prepare for mail-in voting". USA Today. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  61. ^ Nilsen, Ella (July 31, 2020). "States are scrambling to stop a slow-motion 2020 election". Vox. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  62. ^ "The election is in 94 days. Will the results be seen as legitimate?". Christian Science Monitor. 2020-07-31. ISSN 0882-7729. Retrieved 2020-08-01.
  63. ^ Kaufman, Ellie; Cohen, Marshall; Hoffman, Jason; Robertson, Nicky (August 13, 2020). "Trump says he opposes funding USPS because of mail-in". CNN. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  64. ^ Dan Merica (14 August 2020). "Obama: Trump is trying to 'actively kneecap' and 'starve' the postal service". CNN. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  65. ^ Cox, Erin; Viebeck, Elise; Bogage, Jacob; Ingraham, Christopher (14 August 2020). "Postal Service warns 46 states their voters could be disenfranchised by delayed mail-in ballots". Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  66. ^ Bouie, Jamelle (2020-08-11). "Opinion | How to Foil Trump's Election Night Strategy". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-08-11.
  67. ^ "Federal Judge Rules Trump and Louis DeJoy Waged 'Politically Motivated Attack' Against USPS, Will Rescind Recent Changes". 17 September 2020.
  68. ^ a b Naylor, Brian (March 9, 2021). "Postal Service Delivered Vast Majority Of Mail Ballots On Time, Report Finds". National Public Radio. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  69. ^ "Service Performance of Election and Political Mail During the November 2020 General Election" (PDF). USPS Office of Inspector General. March 5, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  70. ^ "New USPS election division will oversee mail-in ballots". Associated Press. July 28, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  71. ^ Ashley Killough, Ed Lavandera and Paul LeBlanc (October 2020). "Texas governor limits election drop boxes to one per county in sprawling state". CNN.
  72. ^ Ross Levitt and Chandelis Duster (10 October 2020). "Federal judge blocks Texas governor's directive limiting ballot drop boxes to one per county". CNN.
  73. ^ Goldenstein, Taylor (October 10, 2020). "Fifth Circuit stays lower court ruling allowing multiple ballot dropoff sites". HoustonChronicle.com.
  74. ^ Lindell, Chuck. "Appeals court upholds order against Abbott's limit on ballot drop sites". Austin American-Statesman.
  75. ^ McCullough, Jolie (October 27, 2020). "Texas counties will only be allowed one drop-off location for mail-in ballots, state Supreme Court rules". The Texas Tribune.
  76. ^ Katelyn Polantz (10 October 2020). "Federal judge in Pennsylvania denies Trump campaign voting policy challenges in major ruling". CNN.
  77. ^ Shepherd, Katie (October 12, 2020). "California GOP installed unofficial ballot drop-off boxes. State officials say they're illegal". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  78. ^ LeBlanc, Paul; Moon, Sarah (October 14, 2020). "California Republican Party says it will not comply with state's cease and desist order on ballot drop boxes". CNN. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  79. ^ Parvini, Sarah; Lai, Stephanie (October 14, 2020). "California GOP pushes back against state election officials on unofficial ballot boxes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  80. ^ Smith, Hayley (October 19, 2020). "Ballot box fire in Baldwin Park may be arson, officials say". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  81. ^ Stout, Matt (October 26, 2020). "'Emotionally disturbed' man charged in burning of ballot box, authorities say". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  82. ^ a b "Absentee Voting Information | Alabama Secretary of State". www.sos.alabama.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  83. ^ "Alaska Division of Elections". www.elections.alaska.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  84. ^ "Voting by Mail: How to Get a Ballot-by-Mail | Arizona Secretary of State". azsos.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  85. ^ "Arkansas Secretary of State". www.sos.arkansas.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  86. ^ a b "Vote By Mail :: California Secretary of State". www.sos.ca.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  87. ^ "Mail-in Ballots FAQs". www.sos.state.co.us. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  88. ^ "Absentee Ballot Process". CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  89. ^ "Delaware Elections | What are the deadlines?" (PDF).
  90. ^ "Vote-by-Mail - Division of Elections - Florida Department of State". dos.myflorida.com. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  91. ^ "Vote by Absentee Ballot". Georgia.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  92. ^ "Hawaii Votes by Mail". elections.hawaii.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-12-29. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  93. ^ "Idaho | 2020 Election Calendar".
  94. ^ a b "Illinois | 2020 Vote-By-Mail Frequently Asked Questions" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 1, 2022.
  95. ^ "SOS: Absentee Voting". www.in.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  96. ^ a b "Iowa | Absentee Voting by Mail".
  97. ^ a b "Kansas Secretary of State | Voter Information". sos.ks.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  98. ^ a b "2020 General Updates - Secretary of State". www.sos.ky.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-11-25. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  99. ^ "Vote by Mail". www.sos.la.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  100. ^ "Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions". www.maine.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  101. ^ a b "mail-in Voting". elections.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  102. ^ a b "Massachusetts | Voting by Mail".
  103. ^ "SOS - Absentee voting allows you to vote by mail". www.michigan.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  104. ^ a b "Minnesota Secretary Of State - Vote early by mail". www.sos.state.mn.us. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  105. ^ a b "Mississippi | STEP-BY-STEP ABSENTEE GUIDE" (PDF).
  106. ^ "How to Vote". www.sos.mo.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  107. ^ "Voting by Absentee Ballot – Montana Secretary of State – Corey Stapleton". 22 February 2018. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  108. ^ "Nebraska | Early Voting". 24 February 2021.
  109. ^ a b "Nevada | Absent Voting".
  110. ^ "New Hampshire | 2020 Absentee Ballot Requirements and Instructions" (PDF).
  111. ^ a b "NJ DOS - Division of Elections - Vote By Mail". www.state.nj.us. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  112. ^ "Absentee Voting by Mail | Maggie Toulouse Oliver - New Mexico Secretary of State". Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  113. ^ a b "Absentee Voting | New York State Board of Elections". www.elections.ny.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  114. ^ a b "FAQs: Voting by Mail in North Carolina in 2020 | NCSBE". www.ncsbe.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  115. ^ "North Dakota | Absentee Voting" (PDF).
  116. ^ a b "Absentee Voting - Ohio Secretary of State". www.ohiosos.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-12-29. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  117. ^ "Oklahoma State Election Board - Absentee Voting". www.ok.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-12-29. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  118. ^ "Oregon Secretary of State". sos.oregon.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  119. ^ a b "Mail-in and Absentee Ballot". Votes PA. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  120. ^ "Mail Ballot- Board of Elections". elections.ri.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  121. ^ "New Absentee Rules for the 2020 General Election | SCVotes". www.scvotes.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  122. ^ "Voting: South Dakota Secretary of State". sdsos.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  123. ^ "Absentee Voting | Tennessee Secretary of State". sos.tn.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  124. ^ "VoteTexas.gov » Military & Overseas Voters". www.votetexas.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  125. ^ a b "Americans can vote. Wherever they are". Federal Voting Assistance Program. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  126. ^ "Vermont | Early & Absentee Voting".
  127. ^ a b "Absentee and Early Voting - Virginia Department of Elections". www.elections.virginia.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  128. ^ Box 40220Olympia, Contact Us Washington Secretary of StateLegislative Building · PO; Policy, WA 98504-0220Phone Numbers Privacy. "Current Election Information". www.sos.wa.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22. ((cite web)): |first1= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  129. ^ a b "West Virginia | Absentee Voting Information".
  130. ^ "I want to vote absentee | Wisconsin Elections Commission". elections.wi.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  131. ^ "Wyoming Secretary of State". sos.wyo.gov. Retrieved 2020-10-22.

Further reading

This 'further reading' section may need cleanup. Please read the editing guide and help improve the section. (September 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

External links

(2019 โ†) ย  2020 United States elections ย  (โ†’ 2021)
Voting rights in the United States
COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
More
Categories