#Pennsylvania headed for mail-in ballot mess for November election

Mail-in ballots for November’s election in Pennsylvania may not be delivered on time because of the battleground state’s tight deadline, prompting officials there to request an extension, the US Postal Service revealed this week.

Thomas J. Marshall, USPS’s general counsel and executive vice president, warned Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar, whose office oversees elections, of the possible disenfranchisement In a July 29 letter made public Thursday, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

The letter was part of a filing Boockvar submitted to the state Supreme Court, asking that mail-in ballots received up to three days past Nov. 3 be counted. Under state law, ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on election day.

If the extension is granted, it would mean the results of the presidential election would hang in the balance for days after the election.

In his letter, Marshall wrote that “certain deadlines for requesting and casting mail-in ballots are incongruous with the Postal Service’s delivery standards.”

“This mismatch creates a risk that ballots requested near the deadline under state law will not be returned by mail in time to be counted under your laws as we understand them,” he added.

Mail-in ballots can be requested up to seven days before the election.

The Keystone State faced this issue in the primary election, when more than 14,600 ballots arrived after the deadline, though certain counties had received extensions, according to the Inquirer.

In 2016, President Trump won Pennsylvania by 44,000 votes — or about 0.7 percent of 6 million cast.

Trump has repeatedly ripped mail-in ballots, saying the system could delay the results of the election by “years” and cause voter fraud. He’s also suggested postponing the Nov. 3 election — but wouldn’t be able to do so without Congress’ backing.