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Breaking: Beyond Headlines!

    • States send mail-in ballots to military voters
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    States send mail-in ballots to military voters

    Umito Posted on

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    The allegation: Pentagon ‘failed’ to send mail-in ballots to active military

    A November 3 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) claims the military was neglected during the voting process for the 2024 presidential election.

    “BREAKING: Pentagon apparently did not send mail-in ballots to active military before election,” reads the text of the image, which is a screenshot of a post on X, formerly Twitter.

    The Facebook post was shared more than 70 times in three days. THE version X has been republished more than 2,000 times.

    Learn more about the Fact-Check team: How we screen and research claims | Electronic newsletter | Facebook page

    Our rating: False

    States, not the Pentagon, are responsible for sending mail-in ballots to the military. A group of Republican lawmakers said they had received reports that at least one military base was running out of backup federal ballots that could be used if state-issued ballots did not arrive on time. However, a service member can access the secondary ballot online and submit it in their own name.

    A “backup ballot” is available if states do not deliver their results on time

    That claim is false, according to a Department of Defense spokesperson who declined to provide his name to USA TODAY.

    States are responsible for mailing absentee ballots to military personnel, as noted on the Federal Voting Assistance Program website.

    He says the military should submit an application for a federal postcard to their respective election office and that this “guarantees that your state will send you your ballot at least 45 days before the election.”

    Former Navy Captain Janessa Goldbeck also said the military media Task & Purpose that the Department of Defense “does not directly distribute mail-in ballots to military personnel stationed overseas or far from their home state.” Goldbeck is CEO of the Vet Voice Foundation, a nonpartisan organization that works to increase civic engagement of veterans.

    Military members can also use a “backup ballot,” the federal mail-in ballot, if they “have timely requested, but have not received, their regular ballot from their state or territory “. according to the Ministry of Justice.

    Fact Check: South Carolina allows disabled and senior citizens voters vote at the curb

    Several Republican lawmakers wrote a letter days before the election accusing the Pentagon of not devoting enough resources to help service members vote, citing reports from their constituents in the military: as reported by Fox News.

    The letter said at least one military base’s supply of backup write-in ballots had dwindled and had not been restocked. But the military doesn’t need to rely on the Defense Department to get the relief vote. They can access it onlineprint it and submit it in your own name.

    Press Secretary of the Ministry of Defense, Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said during a press conference on November 4 that the department has a “robust education program” to ensure military members can access mail-in ballots and participate in elections, regardless of their location.

    There are no credible reports of widespread problems with sending mail-in ballots to members of the military.

    USA TODAY has debunked a series of ballot-related claims, including false claims that a dot near Vice President Kamala Harris’ name on Kentucky ballot invalidates other candidates’ votes, former President Donald Trump’s name being on the second page of the Californian ballot is proof of electoral fraud and that the votes cast on ballots marked by election officials are disqualified.

    USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

    Political fact, Reuters And Check your fact also refuted this claim.

    Our fact-checking sources:

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