Why mailing a ballot close to Election Day may get it rejected for a late postmark

A Wake County Board of Elections employee prepares a mail-in ballot to be sent out to a voter in September in Raleigh, N.C. Matt Ramey/AP hide caption

Relying on the U.S. Postal Service to return a mail-in ballot close to Election Day now comes with an additional risk for many voters — a late postmark that gets a vote rejected.

The risk stems from mailing system changes that began last year. And those changes have pushed some election officials to encourage voters to consider returning their ballots at their local election office or any available drop boxes instead.

The calls to avoid mailboxes also come as trust in the Postal Service delivering mail ballots on time has fallen , and after President Trump pushed to restrict voting by mail for the midterm elections but was blocked by the Supreme Court .

Election officials often use the date of the postmark that USPS stamps on envelopes to determine whether a ballot was sent by Election Day.

About a week before next month's Election Day, USPS says it plans to roll out special postmarking procedures at post offices affected by the changes as part of its "extraordinary measures" policy to boost mail service for federal general elections.

Still, the agency continues to recommend that voters mail back ballots at least a week before their state's deadline. And in states with a grace period for receiving late-arriving mail ballots, USPS recommends stopping by a post office to ask for a manual postmark to make sure a ballot gets postmarked on the same day it's mailed.

Since April 2025, USPS has been rolling out cuts to daily mail pick-ups and processing changes at certain post offices, especially in rural areas. What USPS calls its "Regional Transportation Optimization" effort is part of a 10-year reorganization plan the agency began in 2021 to try to stabilize its finances .