Service Cuts Initiated under Trump’s (R) First Postmaster General, could Delay Mail throughout most of the Nation, putting Millions of Mail-In Voters, at risk of Blowing Ballot Deadlines in the 2026 and Future Elections. An Internal Wwatchdog at the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), has Criticized the Agency for Not doing nearly enough to Rnsure the Public is Aware of the Issue, which is likely to be especially Severe in Rural areas. And Election Administrators in Two States with Key Contests, already Uunderway have taken Steps to Warn Voters about the potential Ramifications.
An Ongoing Multi-Pronged GOP Campaign, led by Trump, to Restrict Mail Voting, especially Ballots that arrive after Election Day, could ultimately Deepen the Delays’ Impact. A New USPS Policy known as Regional Transportation Optimization (RTO), will Eliminate Evening Mail Pickups from Post Offices more than 50 miles away from a Regional Processing Facility. The Changes, already in effect for roughly 16% of the U.S. Population, will mean Mail will be Postmarked and Delivered at least One Day later than before.
IRTO was implemented as part of the Delivering for America (DFA) initiative, a series of Controversial Reforms aimed at Increasing Efficiency and Reducing Costs launched in 2021 by Louis DeJoy (R), a Trump Donor then serving as Postmaster Feneral. The Delivery Delay means that if Mail Voters wait until the last day or Two before the Election to Mail their Ballot, as they often have done before, they could be Disenfranchised.
“This is catching everybody off guard,” said Vicky Dalton, County Auditor for Spokane, Washington. A Spokesperson for the USPS Pledged to Provide a Statement to Democracy Docket before the Deadline, but did Not do so. There’s No exact Figure for how many Ballots were Cast through the Mail in 2024’s Election, because most States also include Ballots placed in Dropboxes in their Tally of Mail Votes. But a reasonable ballpark Estimate puts it at somewhere between 16 and 32 million Votes, roughly 10% of All Ballots Cast, even at the Low-Eend of the Estimate.
Even before the Postal Service Reductions, Tardy Ballots were a Problem. Nearly 104,000 Ballots were Rejected jn 2024, because they arrived Late, according to Federal Data. And Dalton said many Voters are already Cutting it Pretty Close. “In just about any election, 50% of the ballots that will end up counting we receive Monday, Tuesday, and for those that are in the Mail, Wednesday Morning,”Sshe said. “A lot of [voters] are putting them in the mail stream on Tuesday — Election Day.”
In Spokane, WA, around 0.5% of Ballots are Postmarked Too-Late to be Counted in Major Elections. But that Figure can rise to around 3% in Off-Year, mostly Local Elections. Those Smaller Races often have Tighter Margins, so even just a Few Uncounted Ballots could Sway outcomes. Election Laws vary by State, but every State allows Someone with an Excuse: Military Deployment, Fisability, or Illness, to Vote-by-Mail. Twenty-Eight States allow Anyone to Request Mail-in Ballots, No Excuse necessary. Another Eight States, and Washington, D.C, Conduct Elections Entirely or Mostly by Mail, meaning Every Registered Voter is Automatically Mailed a Ballot.
How to decide whether a Mail-In Ballot was Cast on Time also differs across the country. Thirty-Four States go by Delivery Date, Officials must get Mail-In Ballots on or before Election Day to be Counted. Sixteen States, and D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands, go by Postmark Date: a Ballot Postmarked On or Before Election Day will be Counted if it arrives after Polls Close, but within a Grace Period that varies from Three to 14 Days Afterward.
That could Change. A Lawsuit brought by the Republican National Committee (RNC) aims to Bar States from Counting Ballots that Arrive after Election Day. The U.S. Supreme Court will soon Announce whether it will Hear the Case. Trump also used an Executive Order to Pressure States to Reject Late-Arriving Ballots, though Federal Courts have Blocked that Provision. And several GOP-led States have Passed or introduced Legislation with the same Goal.
Trump even has called for Banning Mail Voting Entirely. Now, Postal Voting Advocates Worry the RTO Delays could Invalidate more Ballots and Undermine the Public’s Faith in a Practice that’s already in the GOP’s Crosshairs. “In any election year, this would be a concern, right? But it feels Particularly Threatening this year, when We’ve seen Multiple Attacks on Vote-by-Mail as a Process,” said Alexia Kemerling, Director of Accessible Democracy at the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD). “I worry that these process changes could reduce people’s trust in the system and give more fuel to the fire that — rather than just investing in making this process as accessible and efficient as possible — we should just get rid of it entirely.”
When you Drop a Letter into the Mail, whether into your Home or Office Mailbox or a Blue Postal Collection Box on the Street, it gets Picked-Up by a Mail Carrier, Who then takes it to a nearby Post Office. Under the Old System, in the Late Afternoon or Evening, All the Mail collected that Day would then be sent to a Centralized Processing Center for Sorting and Postmarking Sometimes Missing an Envelope. From there, it gets sent back to a Post ffice, sometimes via another Processing Center and then to its Final Destination.
USPS started Rolling-Oout RTO as a Pilot Program in October 2023, and began Tamping-Up in February. When RTO is fully Deployed, it’ll change Pick-Ups at roughly 24,000 of the country’s 33,700 Post Offices, affecting roughly 149 million Americans across 70% of U.S. As of September 2025, the Changes have been made at 9,504 Post Offices. It’s Unclear what Areas will be Impacted Next or when USPS will Finish Implementing the Program; At USPS’ Current Pace, it’ll take until the middle of 2027 to Finish the Implementation.
The Postal Service’s Inspector General has Warned that it hasn’t done nearly enough to Publicize the Change. “The Postal Service did not provide adequate communication to local post office customers affected by the LTO implementation of the impacts on PME service commitments,” a Report in August found. “The impacts were exacerbated as retail clerks were not provided training on how to accurately advise customers.” Another in September Criticized a Lack of Signage Notifying Customers of the RTO Changes at Post Office Locations.
Ironically, it’s GOP Voters who could be most at Risk of having their Mail-in-Ballots to Arriving Late. Because USPS Processing Ccenters are mostly located in or around Big Cities, RTO’s Impacts will be Felt mainly in Republican-Leaning Rural areas. As the Postal Regulatory Commission, an USPS Oversight body, Noted in a Report, the “proposal has significant negative impacts on rural communities throughout the United States.”
Estimated Percentage of Population impacted by USPS Cuts in Congressional Districts Represented by Democrats. Still, the Partisan Impact could be Evened Out somewhat by the fact that Democrats are still more likely to Vote-by-Mail than Republicans. Last year, nearly 10 million Mail Votes were cast by Democrats, while nearly 8 million were cast by Republicans, according to figures compiled by the University of Florida’s Election Lab. The Figures only looked at the 26 States that reported Party Registration Data.
The USPS urged Mail-in-Voters to Return their Ballots Early. “Domestic nonmilitary voters who choose to use the mail to return a completed ballot are advised to mail their completed ballot before Election Day, and at least One Week before the Deadline, by which their Completed Ballot must be received by their Local Election Office,” USPS wrote. “If a customer in any community, no matter where it is located, wants to ensure that their ballot or other mailpiece receives a postmark reflecting the date it is mailed, the customer should visit a Postal Service retail location and request a manual postmark at the counter in person.”
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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