Two counties in Oregon and Washington facing issues with delivering mail ballots – Washington Examiner
In two counties located in Oregon and Washington, local officials have raised concerns regarding the delivery of mail-in ballots for upcoming elections, attributing the issues to the Postal Service. Residents in Coos County, Oregon, and Whitman County, Washington, reported not receiving their ballots, prompting Coos County Clerk Julie Brecke to express her frustrations, noting an increase in calls from voters. She attributed the delays to an “error” on the part of the Postal Service.
Republican leaders in Oregon’s state Senate criticized the situation as a severe dysfunction within the state’s mail-in voting system, highlighting that voters should not face obstacles when trying to cast their votes. They described the situation as a breach of public trust in democratic processes.
In response to the mail issues, affected voters in Coos County have been advised to contact the county clerk or visit the office directly for assistance. Similarly, in Whitman County, Auditor Sandy Jamison confirmed reports of missing ballots and advised voters to reach out for replacements, also pointing to the Postal Service as the cause of the delays.
Two counties in Oregon and Washington facing issues with delivering mail ballots
In two counties in the Pacific Northwest, local officials are blaming the Postal Service for issues with mail ballots getting to voters ahead of the hotly contested elections on Tuesday.
In Coos County, Oregon, and Whitman County, Washington, residents have reported not receiving mail-in ballots, with Coos County Clerk Julie Brecke telling the Associated Press in a statement that she has been inundated with calls about voters not getting their ballots and blamed an “error” by the Postal Service.
Republicans in the state Senate voiced outrage over the issues with voters not getting their ballots mailed to them, in a state that only votes by mail, decrying how the state’s election system has “spiraled to this level of dysfunction.”
“After repeated problems, Coos County voters are now forced to jump through hoops just to exercise their basic right to vote. This isn’t just an inconvenience—it’s an outright betrayal of public trust in a system that’s supposed to safeguard democracy, not disrupt it,” state Senate Republican leader Daniel Bonham said in a statement.
Voters in Coos County who have not gotten their ballots either contact the country clerk or go to the clerk’s office.
In Washington, Whitman County Auditor Sandy Jamison said in a message that she had heard reports from voters that they had not received their ballots and instructed them to reach out to her office for replacement ballots. Jamison also footed the blame on the Postal Service.
“While I have verified that all Whitman County ballots were processed out of the main Spokane plant on October 16, 2024, it seems that the problem lies with the ballot distribution process AFTER these ballots were marked “successfully scanned” by the USPS into their system at the processing plant,” Jamison said.
“I am working directly with the USPS regarding these missing ballots and have escalated this issue up to the highest level of Washington State’s USPS administration. At this point, the USPS is retracing the distribution route of these ballots in hopes of determining their current location,” she added.
The issues with the Postal Service mark the latest problems with mail-in ballots in both states, after arson attacks on ballot boxes in both states earlier this week burned several ballots.
Authorities believe that the attacks on ballots in Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver, Washington, are connected to each other.
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