August 28, 2020

By Patrick Rodenbush
rodenbush@redistrictingfoundation.org

National Redistricting Foundation Supports New Lawsuit to Protect Delivery of Mail Ballots

Washington, D.C. — Today, a group of plaintiffs supported by the National Redistricting Foundation are filing a new lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia challenging recent policy changes at the U.S. Postal Service that unlawfully infringe on the right to vote in this year’s elections. The lawsuit brings claims focusing on: (1) the delay in the delivery of mail ballots caused by the policy changes, which will place unconstitutional burdens on the right to vote during the ongoing pandemic; and (2) the Postmaster General’s failure to seek approval from the Postal Regulatory Commission, as required by law, before unilaterally implementing policy changes that have a significant nationwide impact. The lawsuit seeks a narrow remedy that would get the Postal Service to return service back to its normal pace ahead of the election this November and appoint an independent monitor to oversee service. The plaintiffs will be represented pro bono by lawyers at Covington and Burling LLP.
 
The complaint alleges that shortly after his appointment, Postmaster General DeJoy “immediately took action that diminished USPS’s effectiveness in processing mail ballots—despite an imminent election that would involve unprecedented rates of mail voting." The lawsuit seeks to reverse two especially damaging changes -- the policy banning postal workers from making late and extra delivery trips to ensure the timely delivery of mail, and the rapid decommissioning of mail sorting machines.
 
“It is simply unacceptable for the Postmaster General to implement damaging, unnecessary, and politically motivated changes that slow down service while we are on the cusp of an election in which more people than ever will cast a ballot through the mail,” said Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States. “The court — and the American people — cannot ignore that these harmful changes are taking place while the president repeatedly makes false claims that undermine the integrity of the electoral process and cast doubt on the ability of the Postal Service to handle an influx of mail ballots. To restore the fast, efficient service the American people have come to rely on from the Postal Service, these policies must be reversed before people start casting ballots for the November election.”

"Vote Forward organizes volunteers to send handwritten letters encouraging Americans to vote. To date more than 165,000 volunteers, many from more than 30 partner organizations and companies, have hand-written more than 8 million letters. This program both supports and relies heavily on the U.S. Postal Service, as our goal is to send 10 million letters in late October,” said Scott Forman, Executive Director of Vote Forward. "Mail delays caused by USPS policy changes have caused considerable anxiety among our volunteers, and if the policies are not reversed, may lead to changes that negatively impact our program. While we remain confident that handwritten letters are one of the most effective ways of boosting voter turnout this year, we may be forced to move our mail date forward, shortening the window for volunteer action, and increasing uncertainty about the impact of our work.” 

“The rural communities Voces Unidas serves in Colorado rely heavily on the U.S. Postal Service for both every day communication and to exercise their right to vote," said Alex Sánchez, Executive Director of Voces Unidas de las Montañas. "The delays caused by USPS's policies have undermined these communities' trust in USPS and forced us to expend our limited resources on a campaign to regain the communities' trust in the postal service and our electoral system."

With states around the country bolstering or expanding opportunities for people to vote during the pandemic, at least 83% of eligible voters—approximately 190 million people—will have the opportunity to vote by mail-in absentee ballot in the November 2020 election. Despite the Postal Service’s long history of facilitating Americans to vote by mail, these efforts have been met with a constant onslaught of misleading or outright false attacks from President Trump. In May, he appointed Louis Dejoy, a donor to the Republican Party and Trump campaign, to lead the Postal Service. As far back as the Civil War, Americans have relied on the Postal Service to exercise their right to vote. Never before have we seen such a partisan attempt to undermine this critical institution. 

The National Redistricting Foundation is the 501(c)(3) affiliate of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, and was formed in 2017 to engage in work that protects voting rights and challenges gerrymandered congressional and state legislative districts. The National Redistricting Foundation has funded and executed lawsuits that include, but are not limited to, overturning gerrymandered congressional and state legislative maps in North Carolina, successfully challenging the Trump Administration’s attempt to add a citizenship question to the Census, and protecting Wisconsin voters from former Governor Scott Walker’s refusal to call special elections and attacks on early voting.  

You can download a filed copy of the complaint here.

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