Will Adler on Mail Voting

Will Adler, research director of the Bipartisan Policy Center's Elections Project, explains how mail ballots are verified and counted, what the Supreme Court's Watson ruling and the Postal Service's ballot mail rule mean, and what voters should know about Election Day. In two weeks, Americans will vote in the midterm elections, and every state offers some form of mail voting. In 2024, about 103,000 mail ballots were rejected for arriving late, the single largest reason mail ballots are thrown out, according to a Bipartisan Policy Center analysis of federal data. This summer, the Supreme Court ruled that states can decide whether to count ballots that arrive after Election Day, and the Postal Service finalized a ballot mail rule it says it will not enforce this November. Mike and Will discuss what mail voting is and how it has grown, how ballots are verified before they are counted, and how ballot tracking and curing help voters fix problems. They also cover why official drop boxes are considered secure, why election night results may not include every mail ballot, how post-election audits work, and what the Supreme Court decided in Watson v. RNC. Will explains the Postal Service's ballot mail rule and BPC's concerns about it, why lead time matters when election rules change, and how the election workforce is holding up. He also offers practical advice for voters with a ballot in hand and what staffers should know before their next hearing. About the guest: Will Adler is research director of the Bipartisan Policy Center's Elections Project. Before joining BPC, he led elections policy work at the Center for Democracy & Technology and worked on technology issues in the U.S. Senate. He previously worked as a researcher at Princeton University on redistricting reform and open election data. Further Reading: Mail Voting is Safe and Secure Drop Boxes are Trusted Ballot Return Options What Could the Supreme Court's Decision in Watson v. RNC Mean for Mail Voting? BPC Public Comment on USPS Proposed Rule on Ballot Mail for Federal Elections (2026-10968) Behind the Curtain of Post-Election Canvassing, Audits, and Certification Prioritizing Achievable Federal Election Reform Election Official Turnover Rates through the 2024 Election Federal Register: Ballot Mail for Federal Elections (final rule) USPS Election Mail Credits: Host: Michael Kelley, Senior Director, BPC Action Producer: Chad Kolton Editor: Tiffany Rocque