Mailroom Offers Guidance for Mailing Ballots
10/09/2020
As the election draws closer, Student Mail Services has some reminders and guidance regarding mailing ballots, as well as information about how the pandemic's effects on our processes can impact your ballot mailing.
Mail-In Ballots: What You Need to Know
- Ballots are different shapes and sizes; if your ballot is small enough to fit in your mailbox, it will be put there. If it is too large, we will check it in as a package and you should receive a notification . As with any package, if you are expecting it and haven't received it after a few days, contact Student Mail Services so staff members can look into it for you.
- Please note that as ballots are sent through letter mail without tracking, if your ballot is not amidst what the mailroom has received and sorted, at this postal unit, staff members are not able to look further into its location.
- Student Mail Services always processes everything the day that it is received. If your name, MSC (mailbox) number, and 20 N Grand Blvd are included, the mailroom does not anticipate any issue with you receiving your requested ballot. Any variation from that address information (name, MSC (mailbox) number, and 20 N Grand Blvd) may lead to extra processing and thus take a bit longer to reach you.
- Student Mail Services has placed extra priority on ballots in order to get them to you as soon as possible.
Advice for Mailing Your Ballot On Time
- Do your best to give yourself enough time to mail your ballot and send it as early as you are able. The campus’s letter mail is picked up every weekday at about 3:30 p.m.
- Currently, Student Mail Services requires appointments to purchase postage.
- If your ballot already has postage on it, you may drop it off either in one of the mailroom’s drop boxes (the slot on our back door or the blue drop box in the hallway to the right of our main entrance), or you can stop by the mailroom and hand it to a worker. But again, if you need to purchase postage, you do need an appointment.
- Due to the variety of processes and sizes of ballots from around the country, some ballots may require more postage than others, and the current rate for letter mail is one $0.55 Forever stamp per ounce. Please ensure that your ballot has sufficient postage on it. Staff in the mailroom are able to weight the ballot and check for you if you are unsure.
Make Your Postage Purchase Appointment
Other Need-to-Knows
- SLU’s mailroom is not a full service U.S. Postal Service site (USPS), and thus does not notarize documents at this location.
- For notary services on-campus, contact Leah Sweetman in the Center for Service and Community Engagement to have your ballot notarized.
- With many of you are voting from around the country, visit this non-partisan website to contact your own election office if you have specific questions about deadlines or processes.
- On Monday, Oct. 12, Student Mail Services is not receiving USPS deliveries due to the Columbus Day holiday. As a result of the holiday, USPS mail often takes an extra weekday after it says “delivered” to reach SLU’s mailroom.
- Most deliveries from Friday, Oct. 9, through Monday, Oct. 12 will reach campus by Tuesday, Oct. 13, and any outgoing mail from those days will not be picked up by USPS until Oct. 13.
- Do not come to the mailroom without an appointment as staff are attempting to limit in-person contact as much as possible as a precaution against COVID-19.
For questions or more information, call 314-977-1128 during business hours or e-mail the mailroom.
Student Mail Services is located in Room 129, Busch Student Center. Due to the current pandemic, the mailroom is open by appointment from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. for package pick-up only.