Arizona officials prep for new mail-ballot dropoff procedures that aims to speed up counting
In Arizona, voters have long had the option of dropping off their mail ballots at polling places. Under state law, voters must show identification to cast ballots in person, but those dropping off ballots are allowed to skip that step as well as any associated lines at the polls.
Instead, they just have to sign the envelope that contains their ballot and place it in a secure box at the polling site. Trained staff later compare that signature to signatures the voter has on file before counting their vote.
That process, called signature verification, is a key safeguard against fraud. But it also takes time and as the state has morphed into a key electoral battleground, there has been increasing consternation with how long it takes to count so-called late early ballots dropped off in the final hours of voting.
In 2024, state lawmakers passed legislation requiring election officials to offer a new option. Like Flahive, voters in the upcoming midterm election will have the option to wait in line and show a drivers license, passport, or similar form of identification, instead of dropping their ballot off to go through signature verification. This option would allow their votes to be processed sooner and counted more quickly.
https://www.votebeat.org/arizona/2026/04/02/id-verify-drop-off-mail-ballot-faster-counting-maricopa-county-2026-election/