(Seguin) — If you are planning to cast your vote by way of mail-in ballot, or even if you are just thinking about “maybe” requesting a mail-in-ballot for this November’s election, then you will want to take note of potential dates and times, that are all vitally important to ensuring that your vote actually counts.
Guadalupe County Elections Administrator Lisa Hayes says while her office is equipped to handle the anticipated increase in the request for the absentee ballots, there is still a concern about whether or not the U.S. Postal Service will be able to guarantee their delivery in time for the Nov. 3 General, Presidential Election.
That’s because the postal service has faced several budget cuts, resulting in slower-than-normal delivery times. Hayes says the current operation of the postal service has been raising questions about whether ballots will reach the elections office in time to be counted.
“I would just like voters who are considering a mail-in ballot to go ahead and send their applications in as soon as possible. If they are not sure if they already have a mail-in ballot already on file because sometimes that happens voters will apply for a mail-in ballot and forget — if they want to call and check to see if they have one on file, they have to apply for it. It’s not something that is renewed automatically every year. So, it has to be something they’ve done. But, if they want to check on that, that’s fine. If they want to request a mail-in ballot application also, great. I encourage all of this to happen as soon as possible. We will begin to mail ballots on Sept. 19. At that point, voters still have 45 days to get the ballots back to us. That’s the ideal situation right there — to have your ballot mailed out to you on Sept. 19, vote it and then get it right back. The applications are coming in hot and heavy for ballot by mail. The voters are very interesting in using this so this is keeping us extremely busy which we like which means that voters want to vote but it’s going to take us longer to process them. The closer we get, the more we get. It’s going to slow things down things just a little bit and so we want to do everything we can to get the voter’s ballot to them as soon as possible,” said Hayes.
Hayes says deadlines for mail-in ballots will be more important than ever to help with the increase in mail-in ballots that are expected to flood post offices all over.
“One, let’s talk about the deadline to apply for a ballot by mail. So, if they are going to apply for a ballot by mail and they don’t get to do it ahead of time, then it needs to be in our office, the application for mail by ballot needs to be in our office by Oct. 23. So, that’s the first deadline we want to talk about because it can’t be postmarked by the 23rd, the application, it needs to be in our office by Oct. 23 and once early voting starts, an application for ballot by mail cannot be walked in to our office, it must come in through the mail. So anytime up until early voting starts, they can hand walk their application for ballot by mail into our office so that’s something to keep in mind,” said Hayes.
Now although, mail-in ballots will still be accepted after election day, Hayes says their ability to be delivered on time by the post office could also factor into whether or not they are actually counted. She says that’s why those requesting mail-in-ballots should just aim at getting them turned back into her office as soon as possible.
“If a voter is going to mail their ballot back to us, again, we encouraging them to do it early. Send it back way early so that you know it’s here but if that doesn’t happen, they need to make sure the ballot is postmarked by 7 p.m. on election day. It is not something I’d recommend leaving until the last minute so if it’s postmarked by 7 p.m. on election day, we can accept it until close of business on the 5th of November but I would not recommend taking that route. I don’t think voters should be taking that kind of chance. I think whether they want to walk the ballot in or mail it earlier, I wouldn’t recommend that they wait until election day to put it in the mail but if they do that, they need to walk it in and make sure it gets postmarked,” said Hayes.
Hayes says there has also already been some changes introduced that would allow the voter to bypass the postal service all together if they wish.
“But if they are concerned about dropping their ballots in the mail and the possibility of it being delayed, another option now that the governor has expanded the early voting options, part of that was that voters can now hand deliver their voted ballot to the main elections office anytime from the time they get their ballot through 7 o’clock on election day. So, this offers a whole other area in which the voters can feel empowered to come in and turn in their mail ballot and know that it has been delivered to us. So, they can come in. They can walk their own ballot in only. They cannot bring anyone else’s and they have to bring a photo ID but they can walk in, give it to us. Their name goes on the roster, they show us their ID and then they have that piece of mind of knowing that their ballot has arrived in the election’s office safe and sound. So that’s just another option out there for those that want to vote by mail because they don’t want to come during early voting or on election day but they do want to know that their ballot gets here safely,” said Hayes.
Although polling sites will still be operating with all the proper health and safety guidelines, Hayes says she still understands that there will be folks who will not want to venture out during this pandemic.
Now while COVID-19 may or may not be the reason for an influx in mail-in-ballot requests, getting that ballot to her office is what is most important.
In fact Hayes, says for those who want to social distance or who cannot physically make it to the polls, a mail-in ballot may not just be their only option.
“For voters who are concerned about coming into the polls but are not really sure they want to go the mail-in ballot route, we always have curbside voting so that’s an alternative also and that’s for voters who are unable to enter the polls. They can call us when they get to the voting location and we can bring their ballot out to them. We have a curbside voting unit that we bring out to them and they can vote in their car. So, that’s also something to keep in mind for those voters are really not sure what route they want to take as far as casting their ballot at this time. That is one thing we are offering. We have always offered curbside voting but we’ve seen more voters taking advantage of it since COVID has been a part of our world,” said Hayes.
Again, the postal service is advising that voters should mail in their ballots by Oct. 23rd.
Voting by mail is extended to those elderly voters and Texas voters with physical disabilities.
Individuals may vote by mail if they are going to be away from their county on election day and during early voting, if they are disabled, if they are 65 years of age or older on election day, and if they are confined in jail but still eligible to vote.
Those requesting applications are asked to call the election’s office at 830-303-6363.
Applications for a ballot by mail should be returned by Oct. 23 and can be returned to:
Early Voting Clerk
P.O Box 1346
Seguin, Texas 78156
The applications can also be emailed to earlyvotingclerk@co.guadalupe.tx.us or faxed to 830-303-6373.
Again, for returning the ballot itself, the early voting clerk must receive the post marked ballot by 7 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3. That ballot, however, must be accepted by the close of business on Nov. 5. to be officially counted. Any ballots arriving after the 5th, no matter the postmark, will be voided.