Post on voting by mail is missing context
With the U.S. Postal Service embroiled in political turmoil, some have begun to question whether it is capable of facilitating a large-scale vote-by-mail election.
“The Post Office advises never send cash in the mail because it’s not secure. Vote by mail?” said Kriger Nordmann in his viral Facebook post.
In response to USA TODAY’s request for comment, Nordmann pointed to his comments on the post.
“If you want to vote for ‘ol creepy Uncle Joe by mail, then request an absentee ballot,” one of his comments reads. “Me personally, I’d wade through a crowd of symptomatic coronavirus-infected BLM members wearing a MAGA hat, whistling ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ to cast my vote in person.”
Service doesn’t prohibit cash
The Postal Service has not stated people should “never” send cash in the mail. However, it did suggest to USA TODAY and on its website that there are better ways to send money via mail.
“Regarding sending cash in the mail, no, we do not prohibit it and continue to advise customers about the options they have,” Postal Service spokesperson Kim Frum told USA TODAY. “It is advisable to send money via a personal or certified check or money order, as these are traceable, and a stop payment can be put on a check if it doesn’t arrive at its destination.”
The Postal Service goes into further detail on its website, noting that money orders are a “safe alternative” to cash and personal checks. The status of money orders purchased from the Postal Service can be tracked using a serial number, post office number and the issued amount of the order.
Cash is generally untraceable. Still, if a person decides to mail cash, it can be insured. For registered mail – the Postal Service’s most secure mail service, which is protected by “safes, cages, sealed containers, locks and keys” – cash can be insured up to $50,000, Frum said. Cash sent any other way only allows insurance coverage up to $15.
Nordmann pointed to a 2018 statement made by Postal Service spokesman Earl Musick. “Please don’t mail cash,” Musick told Ohio’s WTOL-TV 11. “That’s just dangerous in anything you do. As I said, don’t leave your mail out too long. Mail checks or money orders, you can get that back.”
When asked whether that specific statement reflects the Postal Service’s current view on sending cash via mail, Frum referred to her statement above.
The Facebook post insinuates that because the Postal Service suggests alternatives to sending cash through the mail that ballots likely aren’t safe either. The conflation of the two scenarios is misleading.
“The U.S. Mail remains a secure, efficient and effective means for citizens to participate in the electoral process, and the Postal Service is proud to serve as a critical component of our nation’s democratic process,” Frum said.
She added that all U.S. mail is protected by more than 200 federal laws, enforced by the United States Postal Inspection Service, one of the nation’s oldest law enforcement agencies. The inspection service also has a number of security programs that work to ensure the integrity of election mail specifically, she said.
“Inspection Service has a proud history of identifying, arresting, and assisting in the prosecution of criminals who use the nation’s postal system to defraud, endanger or threaten Americans,” Frum said.
Obstruction of mail could result in a fine or jail time for up to a year.
Unlike cash, ballots can be traced, using bar codes or tracking numbers. There are a number of other ways voter fraud is prevented throughout the voteby-mail process, such as secure dropoff locations and post-election audits.
Our rating: Missing context
USPS has not explicitly said it advises to “never” send cash by mail, though it is advisable to use money orders instead because they can be traced. To conclude that this makes voting by mail unsafe, though, is misleading. There are a number of precautions in place to ensure the security of voting by mail, including the tracking of ballots.