Will mail-in voting result in widespread voter fraud? Recently, President Trump tweeted “Mail-In Ballots will lead to massive electoral fraud and a rigged 2020 election.” This is untrue. Experts do not link mail-in voting to increased voter fraud.

Colorado instituted universal vote-by-mail in 2013, and maintains election security. George Stern, elections administrator for Jefferson County, says, “There’s no massive fraud… our elections are secure as much as they are accessible.”

Identity verification protocols exist, including comparing signatures on ballots' envelopes to those in state databases. Voter registration rolls are compared with the Social Security Index so ballots are not sent to the deceased.

In rare cases, when voter fraud is suspected, election officials refer to the district attorney. In Colorado’s 2018 election, .0027% of ballots were suspected. Nationwide, fraudulent votes represent around 0.00006% of all votes.

Experts question whether the US Postal Service is capable of processing millions of mailed ballots. A surge could delay results. New York City’s election in July 2020 experienced significant delays caused by a surge, and while their system was overwhelmed, there is no evidence of increased voter fraud.

Election experts expect delays. “We’re not going to know the full election results on election night, and there’s no reason we should,” says Lawrence Norden, director of the Election Reform Program at NYU’s Brennan Center for Justice. “The fact results will take longer is only ensuring they’re accurate.”

Funding to meet needs of voting districts and the USPS was proposed during recent negotiations for the coronavirus relief bill, but Congress and the president are unable to reach an agreement and are not expected to soon. Election officials continue to express concern that November 3rd will look like New York City’s primary. Fortunately, while delays may be expected for November 2020, voter fraud shouldn’t be.