FACT CHECK: Did Colorado Outlaw Mail-In Ballot Boxes?

A post shared on Facebook claims the state of Colorado recently outlawed the use of mail-in ballot boxes.

Screenshot/Facebook

Verdict: False

There is no evidence to suggest the state has outlawed mail-in ballot boxes. A spokesperson for the Colorado Secretary of State denied the claim.

Fact Check: 

Wisconsin’s Supreme Court ruled that absentee ballot boxes were unconstitutional, requiring mail-in voters to drop off the ballots at the county clerk’s office, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. The Pennsylvania Senate voted to end the use of drop boxes and absentee balloting in the state in April, The Associated Press reported.

A post shared on Facebook claims Colorado also recently outlawed drop boxes. “Breaking news Colorado outlaws mail-in ballot boxes! Other states should follow!” reads the July 11 post. (RELATED: Have Texas, Wisconsin And Arkansas Decertified The 2020 Presidential Election?)

There is no evidence Colorado issued such a ban. Colorado law currently states that drop boxes must be located “in a manner that provides the greatest convenience to electors,” according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The law also stipulates that there must be one box for every 30,000 voters.

Colorado county websites such as Mesa and Douglas have drop box locations listed for voters to use. The Colorado Secretary of State’s website does not mention any ban on drop boxes.

“This claim is false,” said Colorado Secretary of State spokesperson Annie Orloff in an email to Check Your Fact. “Colorado continues to use drop boxes for voters to return their ballots,”

About 75 percent of Colorado voters used drop boxes to return their mail-in ballots during the 2020 election, according to a press release from the Colorado Secretary of State’s office. The Colorado Gazette reported that several Colorado counties also used drop boxes for the June 2022 primary elections.

This is not the first time Check Your Fact has fact-checked misinformation around mail-in ballots. Check Your Fact recently debunked a claim that Pennsylvania counties stopped accepting mail-in ballots.

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