In today’s fiercely partisan environment, elected officials struggle to balance their party loyalties with their responsibilities as representatives of the public they serve. Most falter, unable to rise above their tribal instincts: Witness Kris Kobach’s failed 2020 Senate campaign. Still, a few do achieve a successful equilibrium. Governor Laura Kelly comes to mind. It appears that Secretary of State Scott Schwab has also established a favorable balance. A couple weeks ago, he launched a well-orchestrated campaign against the United States Postal Service.In a letter to the postmaster general, Schwab blamed USPS for the disqualification of voters in the Kansas primaries. Specifically, voters had sent their mail ballots in a timely manner, well before Election Day. But the ballots either arrived late, past the three-day post-election grace period, or without an essential postmark. Under Kansas law, the ballots could not be counted. Through no fault of their own, nearly 1,000 primary voters – approximately 2% of all mail-in votes – were unfairly disenfranchised. Bear in mind local elections are often decided by narrow margins. State House District 51 in Leavenworth was decided by a mere 22 votes. In 2017, the Legislature adopted the three-day grace period in part because of concerns about slow mail delivery. This is therefore not a new concern, nor a trivial one. Secretary Schwab recognized the ramifications extended well beyond Kansas to the presidential battle grounds. In these states, the political climate is highly charged, with intense pressures mounting on election officials and the postal service. Even a small number of mail-in ballots thrown out could be decisive. In 2016, Georgia rejected over 13,000 mail-in ballots. Four years later Joe Biden won the state by roughly 11,000 votes. So, it makes sense that national news organizations carried the Kansas story, and CNN invited Schaub for an interview. He leveraged the moment: “The post office delivers great on excuses, but they don’t deliver great on ballots.”“If you vote by mail, use a drop box run by the county, give it (ballot) to your county election officials, give it to a polling place, give it to any advanced early polling place.” “But don’t ever give your ballot to the federal government.” This resonates in a nation that has completely lost faith in its federal institutions. It strikes a chord with Kansans as well. They visit the post office; they get it. Several days later, the National Association of State Elections Directors penned its own bipartisan letter outlining serious concerns about long mail delivery times, poor training for postal workers and an increase in ballots returned as undeliverable. Next, a bipartisan group of KC area congressional representatives including Sharice Davids, Emanuel Cleaver, Mark Alford, Jake LaTurner and Sam Graves sent a letter citing similar concerns. Schwab’s efforts resulted in a rare trifecta. By casting himself as champion of Kansas voters, he drew praise from constituents while simultaneously boosting his partisan credentials and political visibility. To be sure, Schwab also deflected blame, setting up a handy scapegoat. Now, as we head down the home stretch of the closest presidential contest in memory, all eyes are on Postmaster General Louis DeJoy – ironically a Trump appointee. Will he deliver?Mark Joslyn is a professor at the University of Kansas.
