As mail-in voting becomes a point of contention in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election, Democrats in Congress have called on the heads of the U.S. postal service to testify at an urgent hearing on Aug. 24.
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On Sunday Democratic leaders requested Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and Chairman of the United States Postal Service (USPS) Board of Governors Robert Duncan to appear before the US House of Representatives.
The coronavirus pandemic has forced many Americans to stay home and Democrats have asked for 25 billion dollars in additional funding for the postal service to ensure people can vote from home using mail-in ballots.
U.S. President Donald Trump, however, has argued that mail-in ballots are vulnerable to voter fraud.
Meanwhile, congressional Democrats allege that organisational changes at the postal service are “slowing the mail and jeopardizing the integrity of the election,” while criticising Trump’s efforts to block emergency funding.
“The President has explicitly stated his intention to manipulate the Postal Service to deny eligible voters access to the ballot in pursuit of his own re-election,” reads a statement from top Democrats Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, among others.
“Alarmingly, the Postmaster General – a Trump mega-donor – has acted as an accomplice in the President’s campaign to cheat in the election, as he launches sweeping new operational changes that degrade delivery standards and delay the mail,” the statement continues.
Senate Democrats started an official investigation last week into delays in mail delivery.