Voting-rights supporters warn that a newly finalized rule from the U.S. Postal Service could increase missed deadlines for mail-in ballots and other time-sensitive documents in rural communities.
Under the change, postmarks are now applied when mail reaches a regional processing center, not when it’s dropped off locally. The policy stems from cost-cutting reforms launched in 2021, and affects mail pickup at thousands of post offices nationwide.
Michael Chameides, communications and policy director for the Rural Democracy Initiative, explained why rural communities could be hit hardest.
"This change is going to impact about 70% of ZIP codes," he said. "People in rural communities are going to be hit twice – our mail is going to take longer to get there, then the documents that need a postmark are going to show the wrong date, and this is going to lead to a whole lot of people having their votes discounted."
The Postal Service has said it is not changing how postmarks are applied, but instead clarifying long-standing practices. It added that customers who want a postmark matching the day they drop off mail can request a manual postmark at a local post office.
Chameides argued that the loss of evening mail pickups in rural areas is adding new barriers for those communities. He said he believes the postmark change fits into a broader pattern affecting both voting access and rural services.
"This is part of a larger trend around making it harder to submit mail-in ballots," he said, "and then it's also a part of larger trend of just decreasing services for rural communities."
Federal data show more than 100,000 mail-in ballots nationwide were rejected last year for arriving too late. Experts warn the number could rise if rural mail delays slow down under the new rule.
