Mail in voting explained

Mail-in ballots as an option for voting in the 2020 US election are more important than ever, and the US Postal service will be handling a huge increase in ballots.
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The US Postal Service will handle millions of mail-in ballots during the 2020 US election. Here's what happens to those ballots, from the moment they leave voters' hands to when they are officially counted. If you're using the US Postal Service to deliver your ballot, you can give it to your mailman, drop it off at your local post office, or at a blue collection box. It then begins its journey through a vast delivery network. The USPS processes nearly 182 million pieces of first-class mail, like your ballot, every day. There are around 35,000 post offices and more than 300 processing and distribution facilities across the country. Once your ballot is processed, it's stamped with a postmark that shows the date and location. At the processing center, a machine takes a picture of it, converts that image into data, recording the destination, and sorts it according to the address of the election office where you're registered to vote. State laws vary widely, so check with your local election office on specifics by going to cnn.com/vote. The Postal Service recommends states use the official election mail logo and a tracking barcode. And though some states use envelopes with prepaid postage, you may want to pay for postage depending on where you vote. Many states allow voters to sign up for secure apps like BallotTrax, which will send updates to your phone with each step, just like a pizza delivery. Some states also have an online voter lookup tool to track your ballot or they let you call your local election board to make sure it got to the right place. Once your ballot reaches its final destination, it can only be opened by election officials. And some states don't let poll workers open ballots until a specific date, though that might be updated given the expected increase in mail-in ballots this year. Election officials are responsible for verifying ballots, including your signature, counting ballots, and then finally, tabulating the results.

美国邮政服务将在2020年美国大选中处理数百万张邮寄选票。从选票离开选民手中到被正式计票，以下是其经历的过程。如果你使用美国邮政服务寄送选票，可以把它交给邮递员，或投入当地邮局或蓝色邮筒。之后，它便开始了穿越庞大投递网络的旅程。美国邮政每天处理近1.82亿件像你选票这样的平信邮件。全国大约有35,000个邮局和超过300个处理与分发中心。你的选票一经处理，就会盖上显示日期和地点的邮戳。在处理中心，机器会对其拍照，将图像转换为数据，记录目的地，并根据你注册投票的选举办公室地址进行分拣。各州法律差异很大，所以请访问 cnn.com/vote 或咨询你当地的选举办公室以了解具体细节。邮政服务建议各州使用官方选举邮件标识和追踪条形码。尽管一些州使用预付邮资的信封，但你可能仍需根据投票地点支付邮资。许多州允许选民注册像 BallotTrax 这样的安全应用，它会像追踪披萨外卖一样，将每个步骤的更新发送到你的手机上。一些州还提供在线选民查询工具来追踪你的选票，或者允许你致电当地选举委员会以确保选票送达正确地点。一旦你的选票到达最终目的地，只有选举官员才能打开它。并且一些州不允许计票工作人员在特定日期前打开选票，不过考虑到今年邮寄选票预计会增加，这一规定可能会更新。选举官员负责核实选票（包括你的签名）、清点选票，并最终统计结果。