iiuMAt; mu (1: Hz Mu ll ucu luturm Vim. . . POSTAL smwce July 30, 2020 Honorable Steve Sandvoss Executive Director State Board of Elections 2329 MacArthur Boulevard Spring?eld. IL 62704-4503 Dear Mr, Sandvoss: Re; Deadlines for Mailing Ballots With the 2020 General Election rapidly approaching. this letter follows up on my letter dated May 29' 2020, which I sent to election of?cials throughout the country. That letter highlighted some key aspects of the Postal Service's delivery processes. The purpose of this letter is to focus speCI?callY on the deadlines for requesting and casting ballots by mail. In particular. we wanted to note that. under our reading of Illinois' election laws. certain deadlines for requesting and casting mail-in ballots are incongruous with the Postal Service's delivery standards, This mismatch creates a risk that ballots requested near the deadline under state law will not be returned by mail in time to be counted under your laws as we understand them. As I stated in my May 29 letter. the two main classes of mail that are used for ballots are First-Class Mail and USPS Marketing Mail. the latter of which includes the Nonpro?t postage rate. Voters must use First-Class Mail (or an expedited level of service) to mail their ballots and ballot requests. while state or local election of?cials may generally use either First-Class Mail or Marketing Mail to mail blank ballots to voters. While the speci?c transit times for either class of mail cannot be guaranteed. and depend on factors such as a given mailpiece's place of origin and destination. most domestic First-Class Mail is delivered 2-5 days after it is received by the Postal Service. and most domestic Marketing Mail is delivered 3-10 days after it is received. To account for these delivery standards and to allow for contingencies weather issues or unforeseen events). the Postal Service strongly recommends adhering to the following timeframe when using the mail to transmit ballots to domestic voters: Ballot requests: Where voters will both receive and send a ballot by mail. voters should submit their ballot request early enough so that it is received by their election of?cials at least 15 days before Election Day at a minimum. and preferably long before that time. Mailing blank ballots to voters: In responding to a ballot request. election of?cials should consider that the ballot needs to be in the hands of the voter so that he or she has adequate time to complete it and put it back in the mail stream so that it can be processed and delivered by the applicable deadline. Accordingly, the Postal Service recommends that election of?cials use First-Class Mail to transmit blank ballots and allow 1 week for delivery to voters. Using Marketing Mail will result in slower delivery times and will increase the risk that voters will not receive their ballots in time to return them by mail. 4/5 PLAZA SW DC 202m 1100 Pun-re 202 268 E2535 hxx. 0981 usps Con: .2- . time for ballots to be Malling completed ballots to election officials. To allow enoug completed ballots at returned to election officials. domestic voters should enerally mail their least one week before the state's due date In statesgthat require mail-in ballots iza?sbg?g postmarked by Electron Day and received by election officials by a SPeC'f'c d?ieNovember 3 week or more after Election Day, voters may generally mail their ballot up osted However, voters who mail in their ballots on Election Day must be aware .0 II collection times on collection boxes and at the Postal Service?s retail faCIlitIes, and a a entered after the last posted collection time on a given day "0t be postmarked until the following business day Under our reading of your state's election laws. as in effect on July 27. 2020. certain state-law requirements and deadlines appear to be incompatible with the Postal Sewice's delivery standards and the recommended timeframe noted above As a result. to the extent that the mail is used to transmit ballots to and from voters. there is a Significant risk that, at least in certain circumstances. ballots may be requested in a manner that is consistent with your election rules and returned and yet not be returned in time to be counted Speci?cally it appears that a completed ballot must be postmarked before Election Day and received by election officials within 14 days after the election. which we understand to be the end of the. period for counting pr0VlSl0na ballots. If that understanding is correct. voters who choose to mail their ballots may do so on or before Tuesday. November 3 However. it further appears that state law_ generally permits voters to apply for a ballot as late as 5 days before the November general election. if a voter submits a request at or near the ballot-request deadline, and if the ballot is transmitted to the voter by mail. there is a Significant risk that the ballot Will not reach the voter before Election Day. and accordingly that the voter will not be able to use the ballot to cast his or her vote That risk is exacerbated by the fact that the law does not appear to require election of?cials to transmit a ballot until 2 busmess days after receiving a ballot application. To be clear. the Postal Servrce is not purporting to de?nitively interpret the requrrements of your state's election laws. and also is not recommending that such laws be changed to accommodate the Postal Serwce's delivery standards By the same token, however. the Postal Service cannot adjust its delivery standards to accommodate the requrrements of state election law For this reason, the Postal Service asks that election officials keep the Postal SeNice's delivery standards and recommendations in mind when making decisions as to the appropriate means used to send a piece of Election Mail to voters. and when informing voters how to successfully partICIpate in an election where they choose to use the mail It is particularly important that voters be made aware of the transit times for mail (including mail-in ballots) so that they can make informed decisions about whether and when to 1) request a mail-in ballot. and (2) mail a completed ballot back to election of?cials. We remain committed to sustaining the mail as a secure. ef?cient. and effective means to allow citizens to in the electoral process when election of?cials determine to utilize the mail as a part of their election system. Ensuring that you have an understanding of our Operational capabilities and recommended timelines. and can educate voters accordingly. is important to achieving a successful election season. Please reach out to your assigned election mail coordinator to discuss the logistics of your mailings and the services that are available as well as any questions you may have A list of election mail coordinators may be found on our website at: We hope the information contained in this letter is helpful. and please let me know if you have any questions or ooncems.