1/07/2026

UPPER MICHIGAN - Voting rights supporters warn that a newly finalized rule from the U-S Postal Service could increase missed deadlines for mail-in ballots and other time-sensitive documents in Michigan, especially in rural communities.

 Under the change, postmarks are now applied when mail reaches a regional processing center, not when it’s dropped off locally. The policy stems from cost-cutting reforms launched in 2021, and affects mail pickup at thousands of post offices nationwide. Michael Chameides with the Rural Democracy Initiative explains why rural communities could be hit hardest.

                    0:15  "This change is going to impact about 70% of ZIP codes. People in rural communities are going to be hit twice – our mail is going to take longer to get there, then the documents that need a postmark are going to show the wrong date, and this is going to lead to a whole lot of people having their votes discounted."

The U-S-P-S says it is not changing how postmarks are applied but instead clarifying long-standing practices. It adds that customers who want a postmark matching the day they drop off mail can request a manual postmark at a local post office.