A Little-Noticed Postal Service Change Could Upend the 2026 Midterms

(NOTUS) – A change by the U.S. Postal Service could make it harder for voters to return mail-in ballots on time, potentially invalidating ballots in races critical to who controls Congress next year.

In recent months, the postal service has cut back the number of mail pickups from post offices. That means that rural regions more than 50 miles away from regional processing centers now have one pickup a day, as opposed to two. That change means votes across fourteen states, Guam, Puerto Rico, D.C. and the Virgin Islands could no longer be counted if they’re postmarked after Election Day, even if they were mailed that afternoon. And in states with mail-in voting options — including Texas, Nevada and Virginia — the change could play a critical role in the upcoming midterm elections.