BANGOR, Maine — At least one person has allegedly been knocking on doors in Bangor and offering to return absentee ballots for residents.
The City of Bangor posted about the incident on social media Tuesday evening. "This incident has been reported to the Secretary of State for them to investigate, as it is illegal and may result in ballots never being submitted/county," the post said.
Ballots should be returned by the voter, a family member, or a previously designated third party. In Bangor, there is a ballot drop-off back at City Hall located at 262 Harlow St., according to the city. Ballots can also be mailed using the U.S. Postal Service.
Last week, Maine's Secretary of State Shenna Bellows urged absentee voters to mail their ballots as soon as possible to avoid any postal delays that could prevent their votes from being counted.
For voters concerned about mail delays, Bellows suggests voters drop ballots off at their municipal clerk’s office or utilizing secure ballot drop boxes.
As of 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, the Secretary of State said 334,923 absentee ballots had been requested. 270,861 ballots have been returned.
For anyone still concerned about turning in a ballot early, you can use the ballot tracking service available on Maine.gov. It allows voters to see if their ballot is on track to arrive by Election Day.
All ballots must be turned in by 8 p.m. on Election Day.
To learn more about absentee voting click here.
If anyone encounters a stranger offering to return your ballot, the City of Bangor said you should contact the Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions by emailing cec.elections@maine.gov.
