Wednesday, October 21, 2026

Voters Urged to Mail Ballots Early as USPS Plans Extra Election Handling

Pasadena voters are being urged to return their ballots early as the U.S. Postal Service prepares additional election-mail handling measures beginning Saturday, Oct. 24, ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.

California requires mailed ballots to be postmarked by Election Day and received by county election officials no later than Tuesday, Nov. 10. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder recommends mailing ballots at least seven days before Election Day — by Tuesday, Oct. 27 — to allow enough time for delivery.

In an Oct. 20 press release, the Postal Service said 97.98% of ballot mail nationwide met its on-time service standard through Oct. 9. That is a national mail-delivery performance figure, not a measure of Pasadena ballots received or counted.

Beginning Oct. 24, postal officials plan extra deliveries and collections, special pickups, specialized sorting and localized transportation for ballot mail they can identify. USPS said the measures will continue through each state’s final date for accepting timely mailed ballots.

The mailing date and postmark date may differ. USPS said most postmarks are applied at processing facilities, and transportation changes can mean a ballot arrives there after the day it was placed in a collection box or handed to a carrier. USPS said its postmarking practices have not changed.

“Our Postal Service employees are diligently working to process and deliver ballots on time, and we ask that voters do their part and mail early,” Adrienne Marshall, the agency’s director of Election and Government Mail Services, said in the release.

Voters who want a postmark dated the day they mail their ballot can request a manual postmark, free of charge, from a Postal Service employee at a retail counter. California election officials also advise voters mailing on Nov. 3 to obtain a manual postmark inside a post office.

Los Angeles County voters have alternatives to mailing. Completed ballots can be returned to official ballot drop boxes or vote centers by 8 p.m. Nov. 3. No postage is required for the county’s ballot-return envelope, but voters must sign and date it.

County vote centers are scheduled to open Saturday, Oct. 24. Voters can monitor their mailed ballot through the free “Where’s My Ballot?” notification service or check its status through the county election office.

The Postal Service also said it will not implement or enforce its Ballot Mail for Federal Elections rule for this election. The county provides a current list of drop boxes and voting locations so residents can choose a return method before the deadline.

NEED TO KNOW — Event: Nov. 3 general election ballot-return deadline. When: Tuesday, Nov. 3. Time: Ballot drop-off by 8 p.m. Cost: No postage required for Los Angeles County ballot-return envelopes. Where: Official Los Angeles County ballot drop boxes, including Allendale Branch Library, 1130 S. Marengo Ave., Pasadena. For more, visit: https://www.lavote.gov/home/voting-elections/voting-options/vote-by-mail/how-to-vote-by-mail