MEMPHIS, Tenn.– A Memphis voter is afraid her vote might not be counted after she says the election commission did not notify the public sooner about the additional postage needed for a very long ballot.

As early voting in Shelby County enters its first full week, many are making their way to polling precincts, but some are choosing to cast their ballots by voting absentee by mail.

One WREG viewer who doesn’t want to be identified reached out to us concerned about her vote after filling out her absentee ballot and following all the Shelby County Election Commission directions.

“I was extremely proactive getting the absentee ballot request out as soon as possible and got it back quickly, but it’s a long ballot,” she said.

She said the directions indicated you would only need to use one stamp, but she began to worry about her vote when several days later she received a phone message from the Election Commission.

“I received a call from the Election Commission saying, it was a recording saying, that I need to put extra postage on my ballot in order for it to go through,” she recalled.

The problem was she had already mailed in her ballot and now wonders if her vote will even count.

“You’d think everything would have been done to make everything as easy as possible and not put all these roadblocks in the way,” she said. “Now I have to sit and wait and hope that my vote goes through.”

We examined the Election Commission’s website about absentee voting and the U.S. mail service.
The only reference stated delivery standards changed in 2016 for First Class and Standard delivery, but there is no mention of additional postage.

“To me, there’s got to be somebody in charge and the two have to work together so that we all are able to vote and that our vote counts,” said the concerned voter.

Administrator of Elections, Linda Phillips, sent us a statement, saying, “We’ve been informed that two stamps are required for mailing the August 4th ballot because the weight increased due to the length of the ballot.”