Mastodawn

Why isn't there more shouting about this? This is the USPS undermining mail-in ballots. They find every opportunity to subvert voting and democracy.
Ballots, tax returns and other important mail may not get postmarked the day you turn it in, USPS warns
https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/31/politics/usps-postmark-rule-change-mail-in-ballots

Richard W. Woodley ELBOWS UP 🇨🇦🌹🚴‍♂️📷 🗺️Jan 2

This is (just part of) what happens when politicians are in charge of elections.

TomKrajci 🇺🇦 🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️Jan 2

Stop mentioning shouting. It's time to bring out The Big Stick.

When does the General Strike begin?

https://generalstrikeus.com/

#Politics #USpol #USPS #Trump #MAGA #Fascism

The General Strike

The General strike -the people united shall never be stopped. If we strike together we can make true real change. Sign the strike card today.

The General Strike

@jeffjarvis it is being dowplayed & hushed, so many many many votes can be declared null and void, because "too late". Those votes will be comming from democratic districts btw.

@jeffjarvis it was kind of inevitable. As a collector of US stamps, I've been quietly enjoying the fact that USPS seemed to have avoided trumpification. "Quiet" because I didn't want to draw attention to it. But it was pretty much certain to happen sooner or later. Sooner or later Trump is going to touch eveeything and turn it to shit.

synlogic4242 Jan 2

@jeffjarvis almost certainly the admin's goal

Flying Donny for Democracy Jan 2

@jeffjarvis According to Snopes and the USPS statements it quotes, this isn't actually a new procedure, and people can request same-day postmarks.
"USPS stated the updates were merely codifying already standard operating procedures in an effort to help inform the public how its mail is actually being postmarked and help customers plan accordingly." (1/2)
https://www.snopes.com/news/2025/12/30/usps-postmark-rules/

USPS updated its postmark rules. Here's what that means for your mail

Snopes.com

Flying Donny for Democracy Jan 2

@jeffjarvis
Also,
"If voters want to ensure that their return Ballot Mail envelope receives a postmark with a date aligning with the date of mailing, they should bring their Ballot Mail to the retail counter at a Postal Service retail location and request a manual postmark, which will be applied free of charge upon accepting custody of the mailpiece." (2/2)

Daniel M. Reck Jan 2

@kateiacy Which works great when the nearest post office is an hour or more away.

Or, if you are disabled, it doesn't matter even if the post office is next door. You can't get to it, so you can't get a manual postmark.

I thought there was a right for citizens to vote, @jeffjarvis? Shouldn't that be upheld? Why is there voter registration? Everyone should be automatically registered on their 18th birthday, with bulletproof means to vote from home.

MacCruiskeen Jan 2

@kateiacy @jeffjarvis Yes, whenever I've mailed something that really needed to postmarked that day, I take it to the desk and ask the clerk to stamp it right then. They usually will.

Lauren Weinstein Jan 2

@jeffjarvis Note however that these changes were in the pipeline even before Trump. Postal customers within the 50 mile range of the regional sorting centers will still apparently typically get the same day postmarks. Ironically, the changes primarily impact more rural populations, who tend to be pro-Trump.

Rui Paulo Jan 2

@lauren @jeffjarvis yeah finally someone had the good sense to explain this in this thread instead of letting the conspiracy theories go wild. Thanks

🍀March Mastodoness🍀Jan 2

@jeffjarvis I put hundreds of "Remember to vote" postcards, every one of them stamped, with a few addressed to friends/family to confirm they were sent accordingly, in the mailbox. None of them were mailed out before or after the 2024 election.

I'm positive there was fuckery afoot since before the 2024 election.

SpaceLifeForm Jan 2

This is why, on New Years eve morning, I went into the Post Office to make sure some tax payments were hand cancelled by a clerk in front of me.

@jeffjarvis I wonder for weeks if not months that a lot of people still believe that the midterms will be regular elections. I don't think so. I even don't think there may be elections in the first place.

@jeffjarvis Where I live I can drop a ballot at a government box and receive an email receipt. But if I had to rely on the post office, I would take it to counter and request (and receive) and manually post marked mailing.

Raccoon🇺🇸🏳️‍🌈Jan 2

@jeffjarvis
This is why I either drop my ballot off directly at a voting site, or mail it a couple days earlier directly from the post office, preferably the one in the city nearby.

But yeah, we have been seriously affected by this out in rural areas like the one I live in, where the government will send you a document saying it should only take a couple days to get to you and it takes like 2 weeks.

Tim W RESISTS Jan 2

@jeffjarvis I've only got so much shouting in me. 😞

We the People...Jan 2

@jeffjarvis This is how Dejoy and the USPS will steal elections. Warehouse mail until after the deadline and then postmark it. Make plans for dropping your ballot off instead of mailing it. Make sure your community knows where to drop ballots.

Peggy Heinkel-Wolfe Jan 2

if only we could run the postal service more like a business

:EA DATA. SF:Jan 3

@phwolfe940 @jeffjarvis

I think they are already emulating the "bought by private equity" phase.

@jeffjarvis there goes my excuse why my taxes never got done. Mail ate ‘em.