Leon County Supervisor of Elections offering free vote-by-mail postage in 2024

Voters in Leon County won't have worry about finding a stamp for their mail ballots anymore.

Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley announced Monday that his office will pick up the tab for vote-by-mail postage, starting with the Aug. 20 primary.

"In furtherance of our mission to provide outstanding voter services, I want to remove barriers to voting and ensure all eligible voters can cast their ballot," Earley said in a news release. "I would like to thank the Leon County Commission for funding this important program in service to our voters."

Money for the postage was included in the Supervisor of Elections' budget that was approved last year by county commissioners, said Alex Mosca, public information specialist. The elections office estimated that 35,750 individuals would return vote-by-mail ballots in the primary, for a return postage cost of $27,000.

"Please note that we only pay the return postage when the envelope is actually mailed by the voter," Mosca said in an email. "If a voter requests a vote-by-mail ballot but does not end up returning it, there is no return postage charged."

The elections office is including funds to cover free vote-by-mail postage for the Nov. 5 general election, too. However, that's part of its budget for the 2025 fiscal year, which will be tentatively approved this summer and go into effect Oct. 1.

As part of the initiative, the elections office redesigned vote-by-mail ballots to show "No Postage Necessary" and include Postal Service recommendations and recent changes in Florida law.

"Eliminating the need for postage on vote-by-mail ballots will ensure that citizens are not hindered from exercising their right to vote,” Leon County Commission chair Carolyn Cummings said. “This initiative empowers every voter to make their voices heard."

Residents who wish to vote by mail in the primary or general elections are encouraged to request their ballots now by visiting LeonVotes.gov and clicking “Vote-by-Mail” or contacting the elections office at Vote@LeonVotes.gov, or (850) 606-8683.

The deadline for voters to request that a ballot be mailed to them is Aug. 8 for the primary and Oct. 24 for the general election.

In other election-related news, Monday marked the opening of the qualifying period for candidates running for U.S. Senate and House, state attorney, public defender, circuit court and county court judge, and retention for Florida Supreme Court justices and judges of district courts of appeal. The qualifying period ends noon Friday.

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Leon County Supervisor of Elections offering postage on 2024 mail ballots