Action Alert: Protect Vote By Mail, Submit a Comment to the United States Postal Service (USPS)

Protect access to the ballot and urge USPS to reject changes to vote by mail processes by submitting your comment by 5 p.m. ET July 2. Email PCFederalRegister@usps.gov with the subject line “Ballot Mail.” You must include your name and physical mailing address in the email submission

What is happening?

As a result of President Trump’s March 2026 Executive Order 14399, “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections, the USPS is considering changes to the process of mail-in and absentee ballots through a proposed rule. The Rule would require:

• The creation of a new Federal Ballot Mail Portal (“Ballot Portal”), a system maintained by USPS through which election officials can submit voter information.  
• States to send the federal government a list of all registered voters to whom they are sending mail-in and absentee ballots in federal general elections. 
• USPS to provide states with Mail-In and Absentee Participation Lists on or around the date of the election, containing the name and address of each voter to whom a ballot was sent, based on the lists previously submitted by the states themselves. 
• USPS to refuse to accept and deliver ballots it deems out of compliance with the voter list requirements described above.

Why would these changes be harmful?

• Eligible voters could lose their access to vote by mail because of technical errors. The new voter list requirements and verification processes create more opportunities for mistakes that could prevent ballots from being mailed or delivered, even when voters have done everything correctly.

• People with disabilities and older adults will be disproportionately harmed by any policy that makes voting by mail more difficult. Voters with disabilities and older adults are more likely to vote by mail, and for many it is their only option to cast a ballot. 

• This Rule would place significant burdens on election officials and USPS. State and local election offices would have to implement new data-sharing systems and verification procedures, diverting resources from other critical election administration tasks, like processing new voter registrations, ensuring the accessibility of polling places, securing polling places, updating and testing voting machines, and recruiting and training poll workers. USPS would also be pushed into an election administration role it is not authorized, designed, or funded to perform.

• The rule would limit flexibility for voters whose circumstances change close to an election. People who become disabled, are hospitalized, lose transportation, or move shortly before an election may need to switch to voting by mail, but the new verification process would affect the timeline of when voters must request a mail ballot and could prevent otherwise eligible voters from requesting a mail ballot in time.
• The rule could reduce voter participation without improving election security. Instead of making voting more accessible, the proposal adds new administrative hurdles that could prevent eligible voters from casting ballots while creating additional opportunities for human and technical errors.

What can you do?

• These changes are not yet active. 
• The USPS must follow the federal rulemaking process. 
• This means that members of the public can write to USPS through the comment process to share what they think about the rule, if it will help or harm their communities. 
• USPS must then read all of the comments.  
• Commenting helps agencies understand on-the-ground experiences, impacts on communities, and the general level of public acceptance of a policy. Comments also become part of the administrative record and act as an important accountability measure. Comments can help influence whether or not a proposed rule becomes an active policy.
• Anyone can submit comments, even anonymously. Comments do not need to be long, even one or two sentences can be impactful.

How to Submit Comments

Comments must be emailed by 5 p.m. ET on Thursday, July 2.

1. Send an email to PCFederalRegister@usps.gov
2. The subject line of your email should be: “Ballot Mail.”
3. Include 2 sentences or more about why the proposed rule should not take effect and how it would impact you.
4. End the email with your name, physical mailing address, and email address.

You can review AAPD’s comments here.

We have also included an email template below.

Template Comment

To: PCFederalRegister@usps.gov

Subject: Ballot Mail

Message:

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the proposed rulemaking on ballot mail for federal elections.

[Insert 1-2 sentences introducing yourself and sharing why you care about this comment. For example, “My name is [Name], and I have been voting by mail for X  years. As a person with a disability, voting by mail is the only way I can participate in elections.”]

I am deeply concerned that the proposed rule could prevent millions of eligible Americans from voting and disproportionately harm communities that rely on mail ballots, including older adults, rural voters, military voters, and people with disabilities. I urge the Postal Service not to implement this proposal and to preserve both the integrity of our election systems and the independence of the Postal Service.

Rather than increasing election security, this rule would create significant administrative burdens for the Postal Service and state and local election officials. The proposed requirements would add complexity to existing processes, increase the likelihood of errors, and place additional strain on already limited resources. When mistakes occur, it is voters who will be harmed, potentially losing the opportunity to access their right to the ballot through no fault of their own.

People with disabilities make up approximately one-sixth of the eligible voting population and already face substantial barriers to participating in elections. Research has consistently shown that disabled voters are more likely than nondisabled voters to experience difficulties when voting. Many of these barriers are related to inaccessible in-person voting options, making access to vote by mail an essential tool for ensuring equal participation in our democracy. For many disabled votes, vote-by-mail is not simply a preference, it is the only way to participate in elections. 

Voting by mail is important to me [or, “my community”] because [describe your experience, such as transportation barriers, health concerns, access needs, caregiving, or importance of voting independently].

For these reasons, I am deeply concerned about the impact this proposed rule could have on voters who depend on mail ballots. I respectfully urge the Postal Service to reject this proposal and protect access to vote by mail for all eligible voters.

Thank you for considering my comment.

Your Name
Your Mailing Address
Your E-Mail Address