Absentee ballots processed by RAFL Postal

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Kirk Baldwin
  • 48th Communications Squadron
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  It's getting to be crunch time and your RAF Lakenheath postal team is going above and beyond to make sure your ballots get processed quickly and efficiently. 

"From Oct. 29 through Nov. 4, customers can have their ballots mailed via Express mail 3-day service, free of charge," said Staff Sgt. Adrian Alcantara the 48th Communications Squadron custodian of postal effects. "All a customer needs to do is bring their ballots to the finance window at the American Post Office and fill out the appropriate form. Once complete, we will dispatch it to its final destination." 

This service will only be available for ballots brought to the finance counter. Ballots dropped in the collection boxes will be dispatched as normal first class mail. This service is available at all USAFE locations, not just here. 

Numerous steps have been taken, to include tracking delays, delivery and dispatch of all absentee ballots received at Lakenheath. 

Since February, the RAF Lakenheath Post Office has been required to report any delays associated with movement of balloting material through the United States Postal Service. These delays may include mail being misrouted, trucking shortfalls and misaddressed correspondence. Luckily, very few of these instances have occurred, with Lakenheath only reporting two such delays in the nine-month window. Both delays were immediately corrected and balloting movement has been the smoothest in recent years. 

In September, postal began counting every ballot received for base personnel. In addition to counting the material, a spreadsheet was filled out containing: the number of items delivered, how many were forwarded and how many ballots were collected for distribution back to the states. So far, more than 2,000 ballots were received and 1,200 sent back out. At times the counting of these items can seem somewhat tedious. 

"We do this every day, seven days a week," reported Staff Sgt. Roberto Rivera , NCOIC of the Lakenheath Postal Service Center, "but this is a very important election and we want to make sure every ballot gets to where it needs to go." 

We have and will continue to push the envelope for the most successful voting season on record. From reporting to counting, to special dispatches, all is being done to make sure your vote counts in the upcoming election.