Critical mail delays hit swing states ahead of US election

modern-politics111:

• ARIZONA VOTERS, if you don’t know whether your ballot has been received, you can still vote!

Voters can also go vote in person if they choose, even if they’ve requested an early ballot. You can either bring the ballot to a vote center, or go in without it. The county’s E-Poll books will allow poll workers to see whether or not you’ve submitted your early ballot already. If you haven’t, they’ll issue you a live ballot at the vote center, which will void the early ballot initially sent out.

• COLORADO VOTERS, If you don’t receive, damage, make a mistake, or lose your ballot, you can still vote!

You may request a replacement mail ballot from your county clerk. You may also vote in-person at a voter service and polling center.

• FLORIDA VOTERS, if you requested a ballot but either never received yours or aren’t sure if it was received, you can still vote in person!

A voter who has requested a ballot may change his or her mind and vote in person. The voter should bring the ballot (marked or unmarked) to the polls to turn the ballot in and vote a regular ballot. If the voter does not bring the ballot to the polls for whatever reason, the Supervisor of Elections’ office will need to confirm that the ballot has not already been returned and received. If the ballot has not been received, the voter will be allowed to vote a regular ballot. If the ballot has been received, the ballot is deemed cast and the voter to have voted. If the voter believes the office is incorrect for whatever reason, the voter is allowed to vote a provisional ballot. The matter will then be presented to the canvassing board for determination. If it cannot be determined if the ballot has been received, the voter will be allowed to vote a provisional ballot. See section 101.69, Fla. Stat.

• GEORGIA VOTERS, if you haven’t received the ballot, or if it hasn’t been received by your county, you can cancel the ballot and vote in person!

If you have not received an absentee ballot, or if you have returned the absentee ballot, but the registrars have not received the ballot, you may cancel the absentee ballot by appearing in person before the registrar or absentee ballot clerk and making a written request to have the ballot marked “cancelled.” After satisfying themselves as to your identity, the registrars or absentee ballot clerk shall grant the request and notify the managers of your precinct to permit you to vote in person at that precinct. Canceled absentee ballots are handled in the same manner as those returned too late to be cast.

• IOWA VOTERS, if your ballot is missing, or if it wasn’t received, track your ballot or contact your county auditor. Unfortunately, I could not find a list of alternatives.

You can track your absentee ballot online by using the Track Your Absentee Ballot search. You can see the date your absentee ballot request was processed by the county auditor, the date the auditor sent your ballot, and the date the auditor received your voted ballot. If you have questions about the information displayed in the search, please contact your county auditor for help.

If you cannot vote your absentee ballot because it was damaged or destroyed or you lost it, contact your county auditor for help. There are procedures for obtaining replacement ballots.

• MICHIGAN VOTERS, if you never receive your ballot, contact your county clerk!

Voters who have not received their absentee ballot as Election Day approaches are encouraged to visit Michigan.gov/Vote to confirm their voter registration information and address is up to date. If they confirm this is the case, they may contact their local clerk’s office to check on the status of their absentee ballot application and requested ballot.

Voters may also request an absentee ballot at their city or township clerk’s office up until 4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2.

• MINNESOTA VOTERS, if you haven’t received your ballot, or if it was never received, you can still vote!. This is especially important with the potential invalidation of absentee ballots being received after 11/3!

As long as your absentee ballot hasn’t been counted by your election officials, you may still cast a ballot in person by voting in your polling place on Election Day or at your local early voting location. You can track the status of your absentee ballot to see when it is sent to you and when it is received by election officials. After voting in person, the unique ballot ID number on your original absentee ballot will be invalidated, so that if it is returned to the election office the officials will not count it. If you plan on voting in person, please do not bring your absentee ballot with you. Your election official will provide you with a new ballot to complete that day. If you have received an absentee ballot but are unsure if it will arrive at your election office in time to be counted, you may also consider contacting your local election official to see what options you have for locations and times to drop off your absentee ballot.

• NORTH CAROLINA VOTERS, if you did not receive your ballot, you may still vote!

You may still vote in person as long as you did not return your absentee ballot. Your absentee ballot will be spoiled after you vote in person. You may simply discard your absentee ballot – there is no need to bring it with you to a polling place.”

• PENNSYLVANIA VOTERS, if you don’t know whether your vote was received, you can still vote provisionally so that the election officials can determine whether you voted!

If you already submitted a mail-in or absentee ballot, you cannot vote at your polling place on election day. If you did not return your mail-in or absentee ballot and you want to vote in person, you have two options: Bring your ballot and the pre-addressed outer return envelope to your polling place to be voided. After you surrender your ballot and envelope and sign a declaration, you can then vote a regular ballot. If you don’t surrender your ballot and return envelope, you can only vote by provisional ballot at your polling place. Your county board of elections will then verify that you did not vote by mail before counting your provisional ballot.

• TEXAS VOTERS, WELCOME TO THE SWING STATE CLUB! This article shows what to do if you are uncertain of your ballot - in one form or another, you can still vote!

What do you do if you haven’t received your mail-in ballot?

Voters worried about mail-in voting can ensure their ballot is counted by showing up at the polls in person…

“When my wife reiterated that she wanted to vote then and there, the worker helped her cancel the absentee ballot,” Ken Ward said. “My wife definitely didn’t request the ballot.”

She got to cast a regular ballot.

In Texas, you can surrender your ballot!

Denise Lynn of Hondo, in Medina County outside San Antonio, said she questioned the integrity of the process.

When her absentee ballot didn’t show up at its usual time in September, elections officials initially told her that her ballot was mailed Oct. 5. It arrived Oct. 22. As Republican state leaders waged a war on the expansion of mail-in voting, Lynn worried that her ballot could be invalidated. She surrendered her mail-in ballot at an in-person polling site and voted on a machine instead.

“They may pull some shenanigans about not counting our mail-in votes, and I didn’t want to take that chance,” said Lynn, 67.

• WISCONSIN VOTERS, unfortunately, I couldn’t find any information on alternatives, but this is the absentee vote tracker. Wisconsin, make sure you drop off your ballot or vote in person - they won’t accept ballots after November 3! Personally, I’m less worried about Wisconsin than other states; 86 percent of Wisconsin voters who requested mail-in ballots have already returned them. I’m especially worried about Pennsylvania; only 74 percent of requested ballots have been returned.