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Problem Avoided In Returning Overseas Ballots To The Northwest

Doug Nadvornick/SPR

Elections officials in the Northwest are breathing easier today [Wednesday] after learning about a new agreement regarding international mail. Without it, Americans overseas may have had difficulty returning ballots for the November election to their home communities in the States.

International treaties allow Americans to put U.S. postage on a letter or parcel and have it delivered overseas. Same reciprocal arrangement for foreign postage on packages from abroad.

Last October, the U.S. threatened to withdraw from what’s known as the Universal Postal Union because it felt China and other countries were getting an unfair advantage.

After two days of negotiation, the postal union announced Wednesday that the U.S. will remain in the organization. Had there been no agreement, the U.S. may have been forced to negotiate individual mail agreements with every other country.

Spokane County Auditor Vicky Dalton says the issue and timing are particularly important because her office mailed general election ballots last week to county residents currently living abroad.

“We sent over 5,600 military ballots already. That’s a lot of people. We have people in Afghanistan and Indonesia and Kuwait. We have people all over the world," Dalton said.

She worried that, without this agreement, they would have had to get creative to return their ballots, even turning to package delivery services. Alas, that has apparently been averted.

 

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