Postal workers accused of interfering with US election mail-in ballots
A Kentucky postal employee was fired after investigators said that more than 100 mail-in ballots were dumped. Collection boxes were ransacked outside of six Virginia post offices.
By EVE YOUNGA resident drops off a mail-in ballot during the special election for Maryland's 7th congressional district seat, Maryland, U.S., April 28, 2020.(photo credit: REUTERS//TOM BRENNER)
Postal workers have been charged with interfering with the sending of mail-in ballots for the US presidential election in multiple states, according to The Washington Times. These incidents raised concern as many states have been encouraging voters to vote by mail as an alternative to in-person voting during the coronavirus pandemic.A Kentucky postal employee was fired after investigators said that more than 100 mail-in ballots were dumped and collection boxes were ransacked outside of six Virginia post offices this month.A postal worker in Florida allegedly stole close to two hundred pieces of mail including a mail-in ballot and 36 political flyers, according to The New York Post. It is unclear if the worker knew that the ballot was part of the stolen haul.In the summer, a mailman in West Virginia pleaded guilty to switching voters from Democrat to Republican on presidential primary ballot requests and meddling with ballots, according to The Washington Times. “If you want people to be disenfranchised, make them all vote by mail,” said J. Christian Adams, a member of the US Commission on Civil Rights.Voters in almost every state can track their mail-in ballots to ensure that they were received and will be counted. Some 47 states offer some form of ballot tracking, according to the nonpartisan nonprofit National Vote at Home Institute.
