Ferguson seeks last-minute ruling to speed mail ballots

With just days to go before Election Day, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson is back in court demanding the U.S. Postal Service to deliver ballots on time.

That could be key to the outcome of the presidential race.

In King County, roughly a third of voters are using the Postal Service to return their ballots — Janet Yingling is one of them.

“I figured I was running out of time, but I was just planning on putting it in a ballot box. But now that I know I can mail it today, I’ll probably just fill it out in my car and drop it off right now,” she said.

A multistate lawsuit led by Ferguson forced the restoration of cutbacks that could have slowed the delivery of ballots.

“Mail service is wonderful. We haven’t had any hiccups or mishaps or delayed mail in Pierce County,” said Pierce County Auditor Julie Anderson.

But things are different in the battleground state of Michigan, where the latest numbers indicate 30% of ballot delivery is behind schedule. So Ferguson’s office today asked a federal judge to order monitoring and improvements.

And though King County Elections is also reporting excellent mail service, Washington Congresswoman Suzan DelBene wants to know why postal sorting machines haven’t been fully restored to operations at the Redmond Postal Facility — as ordered by the court.

“Make sure people are able to get their mail in a timely manner because we’re hearing complaints across the board about mail delays,” DelBene said.

True to her word, Yingling sat in her car and filled out her ballot.

If you decide to use the Postal Service in these final days before next Tuesday, you’re advised to take special care.

“Before you put your ballot in, look at what the pickup time is. Make sure that you beat that pickup time, especially on Election Day, because it has to be, has to have a cancellation stamp of Nov. 3 or earlier.”

Ballots that arrive any time before Nov. 24 will be counted, but they must be postmarked no later than Nov. 3.

Cox Media Group