WA Secretary of State asks Postal Service for action on out-of-service mailboxes

Washington’s Secretary of State Steve Hobbs has sent a letter formally asking the U.S. Postal Service to take steps to prevent out-of-service mail collection boxes from being left in public spaces during Washington elections, according to a new release from the Secretary of State’s Office.

Disused collection boxes in public spaces in King and Pierce counties were found to contain at least 124 voted ballots from the Nov. 7 general election, the news release says. Because the ballots were found days after the election, they were delivered late to the appropriate county elections offices. Under the provisions of state law, elections officials have used the dates provided on the ballot envelopes to help determine ballot validity, the news release says.

“This deeply unsettling and potentially disenfranchising situation requires immediate attention and improvement so it never happens again to Washington voters,” Hobbs said in a statement. “I am very proud of the longstanding partnership between state and local elections officials and the USPS, which gives me full confidence that appropriate steps will be taken.”

In his letter to USPS Governmental Relations leadership, the news release says Hobbs requested to know what specific measures USPS would implement to prevent voter confusion and distrust caused by leaving disused mailboxes in public spaces.

Washington has five state elections scheduled for 2024, including the March Presidential Primary.

“Every year, millions of dollars in state, county, and local public funds pay for postage to deliver democracy in the form of our ballot distributions, voters pamphlets, and ballot return envelopes,” Hobbs said. “With that degree of investment, our voters must be able to trust that every ballot put into a USPS mailbox will be delivered and counted.”

Washington’s Office of the Secretary of State manages state elections.

This story was originally published November 24, 2023 at 10:49 AM.