Helene’s Swath Of Destruction Could Include An Unexpected Casualty — Voting

Hurricane Helene left a path of destruction as it moved across a string of Southern U.S. states last week, with an untold amount of property damage and at least 100 people dead. The vast devastation caused by the storm has left many without food and water, or cut off from medical care. Among the logistics issues imposed by the hurricane is one that may not seem immediate, but carries significant consequences: the new struggle for election officials to ensure affected voters can cast their ballots in the Nov. 5 election.

Election officials had already stated concerns about the delivery of mail ballots by the Postal Service in a letter made public on Sept. 11. That letter noted that the Postal Service’s consistent failure to deliver mail on time and the non-standardized use of postmarks across the country could lead to the rejection of properly cast mail ballots in November.

“Over the course of the last year, election officials across the country have raised serious questions about processing facility operations, lost or delayed election mail, and front-line training deficiencies impacting USPS’s ability to deliver election mail in a timely and accurate manner,” the letter from the National Association of State Election Directors, the National Association of Secretaries of State and 29 local election official associations said.

Those issues are now compounded by Helene’s destruction as thousands may be displaced for an extended period of time, polling locations may be damaged or unreachable, and mail delivery to affected areas is suspended.

Adding to the complications is the fact much of the damage is in battleground states like North Carolina, where relatively small numbers of voters could have an outsize impact on