A federal judge on Thursday approved an agreement between the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and civil rights groups that would implement measures to ensure that absentee ballots in Georgia are delivered in time for the state’s two Senate runoff elections next month.
The parties submitted the agreement to the court late Wednesday in an effort to “avoid the cost and burden of further litigation between now and the Georgia Runoff Elections.”
The agreement is the result of numerous ongoing lawsuits filed by groups such as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Vote Forward that were originally in response to the Trump administration’s Postal Service cutbacks.
“Every ballot must be counted, and this agreement with the USPS is a significant step in ensuring that the mail-in voting process for the Georgia runoff election will ensure the timely delivery of ballots,” Sam Spital, the Legal Defense Fund’s litigation director, said in a statement. “The agreement provides for the prioritization of ballot delivery, the timely resolution of any delays in the delivery system, and transparency into the USPS process for ensuring that no voters are disenfranchised.”…