WASHINGTON (WAVY) — Postmaster General Louis DeJoy says he will delay recently implemented changes at the U.S. Postal Service until after the November election.
The Trump appointee issued a statement about the delay-causing changes on Tuesday, after facing mounting pressure from the public and Congress.
“To avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail, I am suspending these initiatives until after the election is concluded,” DeJoy said.
The changes included overtime being cut, high-speed sorting machines and collection boxes being removed, and the closing of mail processing facilities.
DeJoy did not say whether mailboxes and equipment that have already been removed will be put back in place.
“The Postal Service is ready today to handle whatever volume of election mail it receives this
fall. Even with the challenges of keeping our employees and customers safe and healthy as
they operate amid a pandemic, we will deliver the nation’s election mail on time and within our
well-established service standards. The American public should know that this is our number
one priority between now and election day,” DeJoy said in the statement.
President Trump admitted last week that he’s blocking needed funding for the postal service in the next coronavirus relief bill, in an effort to prevent mail-in voting in the November election.
“If we don’t make a deal, that means they don’t get the money,” Trump told Fox Business. “That means they can’t have universal mail-in voting; they just can’t have it.”
DeJoy is still set to testify next Monday before Congress about the changes. Read his full statement here.
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