Time - USA (2020-11-02)

SHOULD I USE A DROP

BOX INSTEAD OF

MAILING MY BALLOT?

A: Despite the fl urry of recent
misinformation about mail-in
voting—much of it coming
from the President’s Twitter
feed— election offi cials have
repeatedly stressed that both
delivery methods are safe and
reliable.
Each offers pros and cons.
If you’re in a rush to have your
ballot reach election offi cials,
choose an offi cial drop box. If
you deposit your ballot anytime
before your state’s deadline,
it will be delivered to your
local elections offi ce almost
immediately. If you live in a
state or county that doesn’t
offer drop boxes or that offers
them on a limited basis,
contact your local elections
offi ce. Many states offer ballot
drop-off locations, open at
certain hours of the day.
Mailing a ballot via the U.S.
Postal Service usually takes
more time, even in the best
of circumstances, and in the
past few months, delivery has
slowed in much of the country.
But mailing a ballot is also very
convenient and accessible,
especially for folks who can’t
easily hop in a car.
Check your state’s specifi c
deadlines for mail-in ballots
and the day they must be
postmarked and received.
If you’re mailing it, election
offi cials recommend that you
give yourself a buffer of a week
for your ballot to arrive. ÑL.V.

A: If you live in Mississippi or Wyoming, you can’t know,

unfortunately. But if you live in any other state or the District

of Columbia, you have access to a ballot tracker, according

to data from the National Vote at Home Institute. Each

state’s tracker is a little different, so check with your local

elections offi ce for details. ÑAlana Abramson

Will I be notifi ed if my mail ballot

is rejected, and if so, can I fi x it?

A:IT DEPENDS ON YOUR STATE. BY

Nov. 3, more than half the states will

have adopted what’s known as a “notice

and cure” process, which requires elec-

tion offi cials to tell you if your mailed

ballot is invalid for some reason—for ex-

ample, you forgot to sign it or you

didn’t use the right envelope.

Offi cials must then give you

the opportunity to correct

(“cure”) the problem.

Eighteen states had

some type of “notice and

cure” process in place be-

fore COVID-19, and at least

11 more are putting them in

place this cycle, according to

The Voting Rights Lab. In the 21

states that do not off er a statewide cure

process, some counties off er their own

systems. Be sure to check with your local

elections offi ce to know your options.

If you live in a state or county with a

“notice and cure” process, you should re-

ceive an offi cial notice if there’s an issue

with your ballot. What that notice looks

like depends on the state, and what infor-

mation is on fi le. Some states will contact

you by phone or email; others will send a

letter to your physical address.

How ballots are cured also varies.

Some states simply inform voters that

their ballots were rejected and ask

them to cast a new one. Others

ask voters to provide evidence

of their identity and some-

times require them to come

in person to a local elections

offi ce. To be safe, voting-

rights advocates recommend

casting a ballot as soon as

possible to provide plenty of

time for any potential problems

to be fl agged and fi xed.

Since most states allow you to track

your mail or absentee ballot, advocates

recommend regularly checking to see if

it has been fl agged. If it has, you can call

your local elections offi ce directly to see if

you can either fi x it or throw out that bal-

lot and cast a new one.

—MADELEINE CARLISLE

HOW DO I KNOW

IF MY MAIL BALLOT

ARRIVED AND WAS

COUNTED?

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