But you . No person shall act as agent for more than two registered voters in any election. Former President Donald Trump and others argued that ballot collection, often pejoratively called ballot harvesting, increased the risk that someone would try to illegally vote on someone elses behalf or coerce them to vote a certain way. Voting by mail is a two-step process in Pennsylvania. In total, more than half of states have laws that explicitly allow a third party to return a completed ballot, according to a tally from the National Conference of State Legislatures. According to the law, "The voter may designate an agent to deliver in person the sealed absentee ballot return envelope to the county auditor or municipal clerk or to deposit the return envelope in the mail. Office hours: Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. [3], Washington law does not specify whether someone may return mail ballots on behalf of voters.[1]. (b) "Collects" means to gain possession or control of an early ballot. "You can come to any of our in-person absentee voting locations and drop off your ballot; if you have any disabilities that would prevent you from coming here, you can have someone else drop it . Monday through Friday If you have any questions about . The information below is about secure ballot drop box . [2011, c. 534, 18 (AMD).] (2) A candidate for office at such election and any person serving on a campaign committee for such a candidate shall not act as an agent for any registered voter requesting a ballot pursuant to this section unless such person is a member of the registered voter's family. The authorization must be preserved as part of the record of the election, and the board of voter registration and elections must note the authorization and the name of the authorized returnee in the record book required by Section 7-15-330. In most states, you can drop off a ballot for someone else but there might be restrictions. In the Memo, in paragraph 2 you say: Ballots can be returned to the clerks office, an in-person absentee (or early voting) site or the voters polling on election day. If the elector returns the Upon receipt of an application or written request for an absentee ballot that is accepted pursuant to section 753-A, the clerk shall immediately issue an absentee ballot and return envelope by mail or in person to the applicant or to the immediate family member or to a 3rd person designated in a written application or request made by the voter, except as provided in subsection 2. I UNDERSTAND THAT IF I PROVIDE FALSE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM, I MAY BE GUILTY OF PERJURY AND SUBJECT TO A FINE OF UP TO TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS ($10,000) OR IMPRISONMENT FOR UP TO TEN (10) YEARS, OR BOTH, UNDER FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS.". Step 5. It says the following: "The elector shall mail the identification envelope to the director from whom it was received in the return envelope, postage prepaid, or the elector may personally deliver it to the director, or the spouse of the elector, the father, mother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, grandfather, grandmother, brother, or sister of the whole or half blood, or the son, daughter, adopting parent, adopted child, stepparent, stepchild, uncle, aunt, nephew, or niece of the elector may deliver it to the director.". To learn which states fall into each category, see the map below. ", On May 6, 2021, Governor Ron DeSantis (R) signed SB90 into law, establishing that "any person who distributes, orders, requests, collects, delivers, or otherwise physically possesses more than two vote-by-mail ballots per election in addition to his or her own ballot or a ballot belonging to an immediate family member, except as provided in ss. Research: Josh Altic Vojsava Ramaj State law also lays out crime classifications and penalties for different types of behavior related to absentee ballots. ", Mississippi law does not specify whether someone may return absentee ballots on voters' behalf.[1]. For purposes of this section, "incapacitated" means hospitalized, ill and confined to his residence, bereaved by the death of a spouse, child, or parent, or otherwise incapacitated by an emergency which is found by the general registrar to justify providing an emergency ballot application; and "hospital" means a hospital as defined in 32.1-123 or 37.2-100 and any comparable hospital in the District of Columbia or any state contiguous to Virginia. In California, voters can choose someone else to drop off their ballot as long as that person isn't paid by the ballot to do so, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). D. To any voter, immediate family member or 3rd person whose request was received in the municipal office after the 3rd business day before election day, unless the voter signs an application, designed by the Secretary of State, stating one of the following reasons for requesting an absentee ballot after the deadline: The law says that the authorized individual cannot return more than six ballots. Many of these laws specify that household members, caregivers, and/or family members may return ballots. Vote got dropped off 11/03, got sent wherever, processing didn't happen until 11/04. For example, some states, like Arizona, only allow caregivers, family members or household members to drop off a ballot for someone else. You can also mail your ballot back. To an immediate family member or to a 3rd person if the absentee ballot was requested by telephone or by electronic means; [2011, c. 534, 17 (AMD).] Include your in-state ID number or a photocopy of a valid photo ID with your application. [3], Utah law does not specify whether someone may return mail ballots on behalf of voters. Here's the solution: Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker. Dropping off someone else's mail-in ballot at a mailbox or drop box could result in a fine or jail time, Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin reminded voters Tuesday. A delivery agent cannot more than two completed absentee/mail-in ballots per election.[8]. Surveys after the 2020 election found that voters who cast ballots for President Joe Biden were far more likely to report voting by mail than voters for Trump. Election Day is six weeks away, and mail-in ballots are already arriving for Pennsylvania voters. Published: Nov. 04, 2021, 6:45 p.m. State law currently prohibits, in most cases, anyone other than the voter . (2) At no time shall an authorized agent have more than two (2) absentee ballots in his or her possession. [3], New York law does not specify whether someone may return mail ballots on behalf of voters.[1]. The law states the following: "Any elector applying to cast a vote-by-mail ballot in the office of the supervisor, in any election, who requires assistance to vote by reason of blindness, disability, or inability to read or write may request the assistance of some person of his or her own choice, other than the electors employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of his or her union, in casting his or her vote-by-mail ballot. The ballot shall be returned not later than the closing of the polls on the day of the election.[3]. [1], Vermont law does not specify whether someone may return mail ballots on behalf of voters.[1]. 2. (3) Inability to travel to the polls if the voter is a resident of a coastal island ward or precinct; or (AP Photo/John Locher, File) The Associated Press. 254.474. However, in 2020, when the use of drop boxes spiked because of the coronavirus pandemic, some criticized the practice. (e) Carrier envelopes may not be collected and stored at another location for subsequent delivery to the early voting clerk. Unless the person possessed the ballot or carrier envelope with intent to defraud the voter or the election authority, this subsection does not apply to a person who, on the date of the offense, was: (1) related to the voter within the second degree by affinity or the third degree by consanguinity, as determined under Subchapter B, Chapter 573, Government Code; (2) physically living in the same dwelling as the voter; (3) an early voting clerk or a deputy early voting clerk; (4) a person who possesses a ballot or carrier envelope solely for the purpose of lawfully assisting a voter who was eligible for assistance under Section 86.010 and complied fully with: (B) Section 86.0051, if assistance was provided in order to deposit the envelope in the mail or with a common or contract carrier; (5) an employee of the United States Postal Service working in the normal course of the employee's authorized duties; or. California law states that a person voting by mail ballot may designate another person to return the ballot if the voter cannot do so themselves and that those who return ballots on behalf of others may not receive compensation based on the number of ballots returned. For example, some states only allow caregivers, family members or household members to drop off your . You can return your mail-in ballot at any of your county's locations. !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data["datawrapper-height"]){var t=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var a in e.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r