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PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A Maricopa County official says a review is underway after thousands of early ballots were mailed several days earlier than expected.
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Runbeck Election Services told the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office it mistakenly mailed 3,126 early ballots ahead of schedule, according to Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap.
The ballots were sent out on Oct. 1, six days before the scheduled mailing date of Oct. 7, Heap said. He added that the recorder’s office did not authorize the premature mailing and learned of it only after it happened.
Maricopa County Board Supervisor Mark Stewart said in a statement Monday that his office is reviewing what happened to “identify any needed improvements to the mailing process through the vendor.”
He said he also wants to publicly discuss the review’s findings “to clarify the situation and explain what steps Maricopa County is taking to prevent incidents like this from happening in the future.”
According to Heap, the error affected only the timing of the mailing — the correct ballots were still sent to the correct voters. Heap said no voters were adversely affected by the mix-up.
“This was a mistake, yes, but it was a mistake with no real harm attached to it,” said former Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, who is currently a legal fellow at the Cato Institute.
After consulting with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, Heap said that the ballots remain valid and do not need to be voided or reissued. Voters who received an early ballot can fill it out and return it as usual.
Any ballots received before early voting officially begins will remain unopened and securely stored until processing begins.
STATEMENT ON RUNBECK EARLY BALLOT PRE-MAILING
PHOENIX, Arizona — On October 2, Runbeck Election Services informed the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office that it had mistakenly mailed 3,126 early ballots the previous day, six days before the scheduled October 7 mailing date. The… pic.twitter.com/nQMSe356lS
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— Maricopa County Recorder’s Office (@RecordersOffice) October 4, 2026
In a Sunday, Runbeck Election Services acknowledged that the ballots had been mailed out prematurely and were on a pallet with other mail that was brought to USPS that night. The vendor said it added “verification steps” to make sure it wouldn’t happen again.
President Donald Trump on Monday seized on the mistake to slam Maricopa County.
“Maricopa sent out thousands of ballots illegally, and they got caught, and now they’re saying it was an error,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They have to be ashamed of themselves.”
The attack comes a month before Election Day as Trump continues to question early voting, used by roughly 80% of Arizona voters. The president has made accusations about Arizona elections and its mail-in system in the past.
“It doesn’t seem like (Trump) even really understood what was going on with the situation. And I don’t think that he’s aware that there is a MAGA office holder who is now in the recorder’s office who is overseeing mail voting,” Richer said.
Jeff Ellington, president and CEO of Runbeck Election Services, said Monday that Maricopa County was not at fault in the snafu.
“It was pure accident, just a human error,” Ellington said in an interview. “We regret it. But it was by no means intentional.”
In Arizona, early voting begins on Oct. 7, and early ballots are mailed on that day as well. Election day is Nov. 3.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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