A whistleblower report claims the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) rapidly developed a new system for processing absentee ballots, potentially risking chaos in the upcoming midterm elections. The system was reportedly created to comply with a March executive order from President Donald Trump, which would impose new requirements on states for preparing, tracking, and mailing ballots. Several states have since challenged this order in court, and it is currently paused.
According to the report, the USPS developed the system in 11 weeks, a timeline described by some USPS officials as a "shit show." The whistleblower states that standard testing procedures were bypassed, and the new requirements could delay thousands of outbound ballots. As of late August, the system was reportedly prone to "completely crash[ing]."
The executive order, if allowed to go into effect, could significantly impact mail-in voting. One specific requirement mandates that ballot envelopes feature a unique barcode and a logo designated by the Trump administration. The Postal Service issued these new rules on August 21, a date that is problematic for states already preparing to send out ballots. For example, North Carolina began mailing general election ballots that same week, and more than a dozen other states are scheduled to mail ballots by the end of September. Even if states could adapt to the new envelope requirements, it is unclear if the Postal Service could efficiently process them.
Under the new system, each outbound ballot envelope is to be individually scanned. While the administration estimates this process takes less than a minute per envelope, across millions of ballots, this could amount to a significant workload. In California alone, the scanning process could take over 380,000 hours.
This development is particularly concerning for states where vote-by-mail is the predominant method of voting. States like Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Colorado, Utah, and California could face substantial disruptions if they cannot meet the new requirements and the executive order is upheld by the courts.
One analysis suggests that while the Supreme Court may not support the executive order, "you can never rule anything out with this Supreme Court." The rushed implementation of the ballot processing system and the potential for disruptions highlight ongoing concerns about election integrity and access to voting.