All of the ballots received so far were from voters on Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, while those mailed to voters in the U.S. had yet to be received as of press time Wednesday.
The EC is expecting to receive a large number of absentee ballots later this week.
The deadline to receive ballots is Nov. 10 or seven days following the elections. The EC said ballots received after this date, or postmarked later than the date of the election, will be declared void.
The EC mailed 2,253 absentee ballots on Oct. 14, 2020 while the rest were sent to voters who requested their ballots after that date.
With just an over three-week “window” between Oct. 14 and Nov. 10, and with cargo flights limited to one every week, many government officials in Palau, including outgoing President Tommy Remengesau, have expressed concern about the EC’s time-frame for absentee ballots.
In August, President Remengesau submitted a bill to the Palau National Congress proposing to extend the deadline for ballot submission by an additional seven days, but the bill was not passed.
The United States Postal Service has said that it will prioritize absentee ballots over regular mail. However, in August, Postmaster Timothy Sinsak said changes that have occurred in the USPS itself could hinder the punctual delivery and return of the absentee ballots.
