Postal Service Rejects Maricopa Recorder’s Claim That Ballots Will Face Mail Delays

PHOENIX — Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap warned voters that mail-in voting would run slower this fall, telling county supervisors that the U.S. Postal Service closed its central Phoenix facility a year ago and ballots would now be routed out of state through San Diego. The nation’s mail carrier says none of that is true.

The claimHeap: a closed facility, ballots routed through San Diego

Heap, the Republican who oversees mail-in voting in one of the nation’s biggest swing counties, raised the issue on Sept. 30 at a Maricopa County Board of Supervisors meeting — one week before early voting was set to begin for the pivotal Nov. 3 election, when Arizonans vote for governor, attorney general, Congress and other offices.

Addressing the board, Heap warned officials that mail-in voting would be slower than usual because ballots would be routed out of state. “There is going to be somewhat of a delay in the mail going in and out. That doesn’t have to do with our office. It has to do with the post office. Many people may not be aware, but the post office closed down their central facility in Phoenix a year ago, which means now everything is routed through San Diego,” Heap said. “That can add a few days to the mail. So make sure that you get those ballots in early.”

The rebuttalUSPS: no closures, ample capacity

The Postal Service did not let the claim stand. In an emailed statement, USPS spokesperson Sherry Patterson rebutted Heap directly: “The Postal Service has not closed any Phoenix-area processing facilities and has more than enough capacity to successfully process local Election Mail volume.”

Patterson added that the agency’s longstanding record on election mail is the basis for its confidence this fall: “The Postal Service has successfully delivered America’s election mail, and we are confident that we will do so again this year. We rely on longstanding, robust, and tested policies and procedures, which have proven successful in the secure and timely delivery of Election Mail.” She noted that the agency’s standard recommendation still holds — early ballots should be mailed at least a week before they must be received by elections officials. This year, that date is Oct. 27. Heap did not respond to a request for comment.

The stakesMore than 80% of Arizona votes arrive by mail

Any question about mail-in voting lands with unusual weight in Arizona, where more than 80% of voters cast their ballots by mail. Maricopa County, home to Phoenix, has about 2.5 million registered voters — a population that makes its election administration a national story every cycle. Early voting begins tomorrow, Oct. 7, and the guidance both sides agree on is the same advice Heap gave the board: get those ballots in early. USPS’s recommendation is concrete — mailed early ballots should be on their way at least a week before the Oct. 27 receipt cutoff.

The dispute comes as voters head into a consequential Nov. 3 election. The governor’s race — with tonight’s debate between Andy Biggs, Teri Hourihan and Risa Lombardo and no participation from Gov. Katie Hobbs, previewed here — tops a ballot that also includes the attorney general contest covered in Monday night’s debate recap.

A rough weekThousands of ballots mailed early — and a presidential scolding

The USPS dispute capped a turbulent week for Heap’s office. On Oct. 1, county vendor Runbeck Election Services mistakenly mailed 3,126 early ballots to voters — six days before the scheduled Oct. 7 mailing date. Heap’s office, which said it did not authorize the premature mailing and learned of it only afterward, announced the issue publicly on Oct. 4. The correct ballots went to the correct voters, the county said, and the ballots are valid and do not need to be voided or reissued; any received before early voting begins will remain unopened and securely stored until processing starts.

Runbeck said the ballots had been processed separately because they did not qualify for USPS automated mail processing, and a container holding the early packets was mistakenly included with mail released that evening. Runbeck president and CEO Jeff Ellington said Monday that Maricopa County was not at fault in the snafu. The error drew a sharp public rebuke from President Donald Trump on Monday, who told reporters Maricopa County should “be ashamed of themselves” and called it “a very, very dishonest county.” Trump also used the episode to revive his past claims of widespread election fraud in Maricopa County. The president was responding to a reporter’s question, the Associated Press reported, and has been ramping up his rhetoric around voting as Election Day draws near in this year’s midterm elections, with control of Congress at stake. Maricopa County is the most populous county in the battleground state and home to Phoenix.

Heap is a Republican and an ally of Trump who oversees voter registration and mail-in voting in Maricopa County — one of the nation’s biggest swing counties. He expanded his oversight of elections earlier this year after a legal battle with the Board of Supervisors, the same body he addressed on Sept. 30.