Alaskans voting by mail will need to put 84 cents worth of postage on their ballot envelopes to send them back by post to the state Division of Elections.
One Forever stamp is currently worth 60 cents, meaning a second stamp would be needed to mail absentee ballots. Voters are required to use the correct amount of postage when mailing a ballot, but the U.S. Postal Service has a policy to still deliver ballots even if postage is unpaid or if there is insufficient postage.
Division of Elections Director Gail Fenumiai said the postage costs were determined after Anchorage postal workers weighed the ballots and found they were between 1.1 and 1.2 ounces. The cost to mail a stamped letter weighing between one and two ounces is 84 cents.
“Realizing that scales may vary, the division felt it was best to go with the higher number in the instructions,” Feniumiai said.
The two-stamps requirement for Alaska by-mail voters sparked frustration and confusion online as absentee ballots started to be delivered across the state. The ballot envelope stated that first class postage is required, but not how much.
The vote-by-mail instructions inside the envelope said 84 cents of postage is required, but it was in the fifth paragraph and was not highlighted like other important absentee voting instructions. Those reminders included that:
• Alaska voters need to have their absentee ballots postmarked on or before Election Day on Nov. 8 to be counted and they need to be received by the division within 10 days of the election. The division recommends voters return their ballots as soon as possible, and to get them hand stamped by a postal worker.
• Voters need to sign their ballots and put one identifier on the ballot envelope such as a Social Security number or birth date. A witness over the age of 18 must watch the voter sign the ballot envelope and then sign it themselves.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least 19 states and the District of Columbia pay for postage for mail-in ballots. Alaska is not one of them.
When asked if the division will count by-mail ballots with insufficient postage, Fenumiai confirmed it would, as long as ballots arrive at the division on time and fulfill all the statutory requirements, such as the witness signature.
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