Grand Canyon Times

As the U.S. relies heavily on mail-in ballots during the November elections, even the post office admits its delivery is slow in key battleground states.

Four out of 13 postal districts in battleground states didn’t meet any first-class services goals between April 1 and June 30 and six achieved just one, NPR reported.

"I believe it is highly likely that in the November general election, the absentee ballots of at least tens of thousands of voters will arrive at election offices after Election Day and will not be counted unless the Ballot Receipt Deadline is extended," Ronald Stroman, deputy postmaster general from 2011 until June 1, wrote in a recent court filing, NPR reported.

Rochester Hills City Clerk Tina Barton told NPR that people have told her they're going days without getting mail and it makes her nervous. Her town has some of the lowest on-time delivery rates in the U.S., according to NPR.

State Rep. John Kavanagh (R-Fountain Hills), who is running for re-election in the Nov. 3 general election, disputes allegations that President Donald Trump is to blame for the U.S. Post Office having slow delivery.

“The post office's problems pre-date the Trump administration and the Post Office has opposed money saving changes, like ending the unneeded Saturday delivery, that would free up funds to speed up the mail,” he told the Grand Canyon Times.

Voters are advised to either mail ballots a week before election day or drop them off on or before election day at an early voting site or election-day site, Kavanagh said.

“If people follow the directions, their ballots will be counted,” he said. “Finally, you can track your ballot to confirm its arrival and if has not arrived by election day, you can vote in person.”

With safeguards in place, claims that Trump tried to slow mail delivery “are little more than partisan attacks designed to harm Trump and which, unwittingly, are undermining the people's faith in the election,” the legislator said. “Some partisan operatives will do anything for a vote.”

The Postal Service has consolidated processing centers which means mail can be shipped for hours even if it’s only going a flew blocks away, NPR reported.