Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows is urging absentee voters to plan for possible mail delays as election officials around the country have raised concerns about the U.S. Postal Service’s ability to handle an influx of election mail.

“We’ve definitely heard about mail delays here in Maine,” Bellows said in an interview Monday.

She is encouraged by commitments the Postal Service has made to prioritize ballots, but her office is still urging people to use drop boxes or return their ballot to their municipal clerk in-person in order to lighten the load on the Postal Service and give themselves greater certainty that their ballot is received ahead of the Nov. 5 election.

Elections officials around the country have raised concerns in recent months about the Postal Service’s ability to handle a large amount of election mail this year. In September, Bellows and other secretaries of state wrote a letter to U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy asking the Postal Service to address inadequate training of employees, long delivery times and an increase in mail returned as undeliverable.

Bellows said Monday that she and her staff have met twice with DeJoy and are in frequent contact with Postal Service leadership in Maine.

“We know the Postal Service is committed to extraordinary measures to prioritize ballots and do sweeps of the distribution centers on Election Day and deliver any outstanding ballots to polling places prior to 8 p.m., when the polls close,” Bellows said.

A spokesperson for the Postal Service in Maine did not respond Monday to questions about whether Maine is currently experiencing delays in mail delivery, the concerns raised by the secretaries of state and whether the USPS has any advice for voters to ensure their ballots make it back to municipal offices on time.

DELAYS WELL DOCUMENTED

Delays in Maine’s mail delivery in recent years have been well documented. In 2023, a federal audit of five postal stations in southern Maine conducted in response to requests from Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, found deficiencies at all five locations, including delayed mail that was not properly reported and improper scanning of package codes.

On Monday, the office of Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said King has been looking into concerns in Maine and nationwide and shared a letter that he and several other senators sent to DeJoy in June raising concerns about delivery issues and asking if the Postal Service is prepared for the 2024 election.

King’s office also shared a July response from Scott Slusher of the postal service in which Slusher said the Postal Service has “proven processes for proper handling and timely delivery of election mail” and is working closely with election officials at all levels of government to ensure proper mail design and delivery.

The Postal Service also will take steps such as expedited handling, special pickups and extra deliveries that have been used in past elections, Slusher said.

At the time of the letter, the Postal Service also was considering a proposed move of mail processing from a Hampden postal facility in Maine to one in Scarborough, though the service has since announced that it is no longer pursing that change.

In his letter, Slusher said that during the 2022 midterm elections, the postal service delivered 105.4 million ballots to and from voters, with 99.93% delivered from voters to election officials within seven days and 98.96% delivered within three days.

“As the popularity and use of voting by mail continues across the country, the Postal Service will remain fully focused on delivering for election officials and for voters who choose to use the mail to participate in elections,” Slusher wrote.

Annie Clark, a spokesperson for Collins, said the senator fought to preserve the Hampden processing center because its closure would have caused significant delays. “In addition, she continues to bring delivery problems brought to her six state offices to the attention of USPS officials,” Clark said in an email. “She has also raised concerns about service issues in Maine directly to the Postmaster General.”

Pingree said Monday that she recently joined dozens of other members of the House of Representatives in signing on to a letter led by Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wisconsin, expressing continued concerns over mail delays and urging DeJoy to reverse course on plans that she said are a root cause of delays that are disproportionately impacting rural residents.

“Amid such a pivotal election, voters should only have to worry about the issues at hand and making their voice heard, not whether their ballot will make it in time to be counted,” Pingree said in a statement.

A spokesperson for Rep. Jared Golden, D-2nd District, said he expects the Postal Service to “do everything in its power to ensure absentee ballots are delivered on time” and he is working to “push back against plans to lower timely mail delivery standards” in Maine.

“He also reminds Mainers that any voter who is concerned about their ballot not arriving on time through the mail can deliver their absentee ballot to their municipal clerk in-person,” Golden spokesperson Mario Moretto said in an email.

VOTERS ENCOURAGED TO NOT WAIT

Bellows said DeJoy has said that the postal service will not penalize postmasters who decide to use local delivery, as opposed to having ballots diverted to distribution centers for delivery, prior to the election.

For voters who do choose to vote by mail, she said it is important to ensure ballots are returned in official absentee ballot return envelopes. There is no deadline for voters to postmark their ballots, but all ballots must be received by municipal clerks by 8 p.m. on Election Day.

“My recommendation to voters is to make a plan,” Bellows said. “If you’re able to vote absentee today, don’t wait. The sooner you are able to cast that ballot and return the ballot, then you will have that peace of mind.”

Maine has an online tracking system for voters to check and see if their ballots have been received and accepted. If a voter’s ballot has not been received by Election Day, Bellows said they have the option of voting in-person and having the absentee ballot canceled. That option is only for ballots that haven’t been received, and can’t be used to change a ballot that’s already been accepted.

“If you see your ballot hasn’t been returned by Election Day, you have not sacrificed your right to vote,” Bellows said. “You can go to the polls on Election Day and let your clerk know what has happened. If they confirm your ballot was not received, they can spoil or reject the original ballot and you can vote at the polls.”

While Maine has struggled at times with on-time mail delivery and staffing at the Postal Service in the past, Bellows said the state “has not seen a huge problem” with delays in previous elections.

“The postal workers and the leadership in Maine have shown a wonderful commitment to prioritizing ballots,” she said. “So we’re hopeful that again in November we will see those same measures will result in ballots getting back to clerks on time.”