Salem, Oregon – For 7,314 Oregon voters, a late postmark meant their ballot did not count in the May 2026 primary. That figure is now central to state leaders’ push to protect vote-by-mail and give voters more ways to make sure their ballots arrive on time.
With the November election ahead, Secretary of State Tobias Read is urging Oregonians to use the state’s 324 secure, official ballot drop boxes. He is also seeking money for 20 more, along with a statewide tracking tool that would help voters follow their ballots.
Read joined Governor Tina Kotek and U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley at a press conference to defend Oregon’s mail voting system and discuss their opposition to federal actions they described as unlawful. Their message combined a defense of voter access with specific requests aimed at reducing delivery problems.
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New turnout and participation statistics released by Read show that 7,314 ballots received during the seven-day period after the May primary were rejected because of late postmarks. That was a 35% increase from the 5,404 rejected for the same reason in May 2022, the previous midterm primary.
Among ballots received during that seven-day grace period, the late-postmark rejection rate reached 13.1% this year. It was 9.5% in the 2024 primary and 8.2% in 2022. The newly released election statistics also include additional data and visualizations intended to improve transparency.
“There is a lot of uncertainty right now. There are a lot of people trying to make voting harder or more confusing. But Oregon is not going to sit back and hope for the best. We are going to prepare. We are going to adapt. And we are going to protect every eligible Oregonian’s right to vote,” Read said.
Kotek described protecting elections as a shared concern that extends beyond political parties. Wyden defended Oregon’s decades of experience with mail voting and pledged to fight federal overreach and postal disruptions. Merkley called for a strong defense of the system while accusing President Trump of trying to interfere with the November election.
Read’s emergency funding request to the Oregon Legislature would pay for the additional drop boxes and costs associated with greater use of existing boxes. It would also support an opt-in ballot tracking tool, giving voters more information about their ballot’s status so they can respond quickly if a disruption occurs.
A recording of the press conference can be found here.
