Several Joseph City residents have reported to The Painted Desert Tribune that they have not received their early ballots for the Nov. 3 general election, despite having used the same mailing addresses for previous elections without issue. Three who reported the concern noted that they contacted the Navajo County Recorder’s Office and confirmed that their addresses on file were correct.
In response, Navajo County Recorder David Marshall said his office worked to reach voters whose ballots were returned by the US Postal Service. Marshall said his staff sent automated phone calls, text messages and mailed flyers asking those voters to contact the Recorder’s Office. But residents who received the flyers found the contact phone number covered with white tape, adding to more confusion. USPS confirmed the tape was applied by its office, explaining that the way the number was printed made it difficult for the automated sorting machines to read the codes printed on the mail due to the black background with the white numbers over it. Regarding the returned ballots, USPS is also investigating the issue.
In a Facebook post on Oct. 21, the Recorder’s Office addressed the delivery problems. “The Recorder’s Office is aware of issues with the United States Postal Service that may be affecting ballot delivery,” the post said. The deadline to request an early ballot was Oct. 23, so voters who have not received one by the time this article is published will need to vote in person on Election Day, Nov. 3. Registered voters who would like to vote early in person can do so at the Recorder’s Office in Holbrook until Oct. 30.
Returned ballots drew national attention to Navajo County during the July 21 primary. In a statement posted to the county website on July 31, the Recorder’s Office said 1,357 early ballots mailed for the primary were returned by USPS. The office said some returns occur in every election and that Arizona law makes early ballots non-forwardable, so USPS cannot send a ballot to a new address even when a resident has filed a change of address. After a sample of 200 returned envelopes was reviewed, the Postal Service found that about 66% were returned because the recipient had a change-of-address order on file, with the rest tied to vacant addresses, insufficient addresses and closed post office boxes.
In a statement after the primary, the Postal Service said the share of Navajo County ballots returned as undeliverable, about 2.5%, was in line with what it expects. The agency said it followed proper protocol for the return service the county requested.
For residents who should have received a mail-in ballot but did not, reach out to the Navajo County Recorder’s Office at 928-524-4192 as well as your local post office so that it can be documented.
