The U.S. Postal Service has been slow in delivering mail-in ballots.
Posted by What A Day, Checked
- Sources
- 2 contradict2 support4 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 60%
What A DayOct 22, 2026
The claim matches the passage's wording and the sources conflict on it. Before October 22, reporting from AP (July 29) and the NYT-derived data (Sept 1) documented rising late-arriving and rejected mail ballots and official concern about delays, while USPS and its Inspector General reported high on-time performance (97.98% through Oct 9; 97.75–98.99% processing scores).
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… If you cast your vote by mail ballot on or before Election Day, but it arrives less than seven days after Election Day, it's counted. But if it arrives eight days later, nine days later, ten days later, it's not counted. And the Postal Service has been slow, noticeably so, and we want your vote by mail ballot to count. So, we're recommending, put it in the in the mailbox a week or more before the election if you're going to use the mailbox. For those of you listening, that would be October 27. You could get your Halloween costume and then mail in your ballot. …
What A Day · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. The USPS Office of Inspector General found on-time processing scores of 97.75 to 98.99 percent for Election and Political Mail from February through May 2026, and USPS reported 97.98% of ballot mail delivered on time through Oct 9.[3][4]
Supports. AP reported in July that concerns over delays had turned the midterms spotlight on the Postal Service, with ballots in California and Wisconsin arriving too late to be counted in earlier elections.[1]
Supports. The New York Times analysis found late-arriving mail ballot rejections rose in roughly a dozen states, with Wisconsin's late-related rejections jumping from about 2,300 to about 5,000 between spring elections.[5]
Context. Whistleblower and senator allegations (Sept 1) concern USPS plans and rules that could lead to rejected ballots, not documented slow delivery; the Supreme Court blocked those rules.[2][7]
Context. USPS states its performance is strong and it is using extraordinary measures from Oct 24, while the Broward delay reports (Oct 27) post-date the claim.[6][8]
Sources
8 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 primary, 4 not rated, 1 tier 2
- 1US Postal Service finds itself in the midterms spotlightapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Whistleblower says USPS mail-in voting restrictions could ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 3Processing of Election and Political Mail for the 2026 ...uspsoig.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 4USPS on mail-in votes ahead of electionyahoo.com · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 5More Mail Ballots Arriving Late This Cycle and Getting Tossedseattletimes.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6Broward elections chief urges voters to hand-deliver mail ...cbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
- 7Inside the US Postal Service sprint to deliver millions of ballots by Tuesdaycharlotteobserver.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 8U.S. Postal Service Says It's Business as Usual for the 2026 Electionabout.usps.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
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