The bill sponsored by Congressman Mfume would make it easier for Americans to track their mail-in ballots
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Congressman Kweisi Mfume (D-MD-07) and U.S. Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX-17) introduced bipartisan legislation to increase the transparency of mail-in ballots, boosting confidence in our elections and helping Americans verify that their votes are counted. The Vote By Mail Tracking Act would add an official logo and standardized tracking barcodes to each mail-in ballot, allowing voters to track their ballot's status. Congressman Mfume co-led the introduction of this bill in September 2023, during the 118th Congress, and it later passed the House with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 396-6.
“Over 47 million Americans voted by mail in the last General Election, and those voters deserve to know that their ballots have been delivered and counted. This common-sense legislation will help voters track their mail-in ballots at every stage of delivery and will aid in election administration – thereby strengthening the electoral process as a whole. I am proud to reintroduce this bipartisan legislation and urge its passage to help give each voter peace of mind over the status of their mail-in ballots,” said Congressman Kweisi Mfume.
“Free, fair, and transparent elections are fundamental to our democracy, and Texans expect their government to get this right,” said Congressman Pete Sessions. “I am proud to co-lead the reintroduction of the Vote by Mail Tracking Act to bring greater accountability, reliability, and confidence to the vote-by-mail process. This bipartisan legislation builds on overwhelming support from the last Congress and implements commonsense safeguards, like ballot tracking and clear Postal Service standards, to ensure every lawful vote is handled securely and responsibly for voters in Texas and across the nation.”
The Vote by Mail Tracking Act would help voters track their ballots and have confidence that election officials count their votes. Under this bill, each mail-in ballot envelope must:
- Contain a United States Postal Service (USPS) barcode;
- Meet USPS design requirements and standards for machinable letters; and
- Include the Official Election Mail logo.
Some states already have ballot tracking systems available for voters to use, but in other states it can be hard to verify if a ballot arrives on time. This bill would make transparency the standard nationwide so every eligible voter trusts that their vote is safely received and processed. The Vote by Mail Tracking Act is cosponsored by 25 Members of Congress and endorsed by the National Association of Postal Supervisors.
Click HERE to read the bill's full text.
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