What is Political Mail?
Political Mail is campaign material mailed by a registered political candidate, campaign committee, or party committee, or issue-advocacy and voter-mobilization mail from a PAC or similar organization. It is identified with the red Tag 57, Political Campaign Mailing, on trays and sacks, plus Political Mail Service Type Identifiers (STIDs) and the Political Campaign Mail checkbox on the postage statement. The tag gives the mail visibility in the network; it is not a discount. Political Mail can go First-Class or USPS Marketing Mail like any other mailing.
What is Official Election Mail?
Official Election Mail is mail created by an authorized election official to or from voters for the voting process, including vote-by-mail ballots. It uses the Official Election Mail logo (the eagle logo), the Election Mail checkbox, and, for ballots, the green Tag 191 (Domestic and International Ballots) and a serialized Intelligent Mail barcode. Ballot Mail is the subset that carries a live ballot. This is distinct from Political Mail.
Timing and planning
Election cycles create volume surges, so plan political and election mailings early and coordinate drop dates against the class service standard (see How long does First-Class Mail take, How long does USPS Marketing Mail take) and the election date. Plavidian applies the correct tags, logo, checkboxes, and STIDs and can advise on in-home timing.
Design and identification
Apart from the tags and logo, political and election mail follows the same physical, addressing, and automation standards as any mailpiece (see Which way should the address read on a letter, What is CASS processing and why does it matter). Using the identifiers correctly helps USPS prioritize visibility and tracking; it does not exempt the piece from mailability rules.