Henderson voters who still have a mail ballot sitting on the kitchen counter have one week to get it counted, and voting advocates say the safest bet is a drop box or an in-person vote center.

The U.S. Postal Service's recommended deadline for mailing ballots passed Tuesday, Oct. 27, one week before the Nov. 3 Election Day, the Nevada Current reported. The agency had urged voters to mail completed ballots at least seven days before they must reach local election offices.

"If you are unable to mail it back by the 27th, please drop it off at a dropbox or vote in person either early or on Election Day," said Kerry Durmick, Nevada state director for All Voting is Local, according to the Nevada Current.

The timing matters because of how postmarks work. The Postal Service postmarks mail when it reaches a processing facility, not when a voter drops it in a mailbox, the Nevada Independent reported. A ballot placed in a mailbox on Election Day might not receive that day's postmark, which could invalidate the vote.

Under Nevada law, mailed ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by the election department no later than 5 p.m. on the fourth day after Election Day, according to the Clark County Election Department's mail ballot guide.

Clark County's election department urged voters not to wait, advising them to mail ballots as soon as possible or deposit them at drop-off locations. Options include any listed Election Department or City Clerk drop-off site, any Election Day vote center on Nov. 3 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and the full list is available at www.ClarkCountyNV.gov/vote.

Clark County voters can go to any of more than 100 vote centers on Election Day, regardless of precinct, according to the county elections page.

Emily Persaud-Zamora, executive director of Silver State Voices, directed voters worried about timely delivery to use drop boxes or bring ballots directly to a local election office, the Nevada Current reported. Athar Haseebullah, executive director of the ACLU of Nevada, said mail voting is safe but warned about potential postal delays.

The USPS said it began deploying extra measures on Oct. 24, including additional deliveries, special pickups and expedited sorting at processing facilities, according to a USPS statement. The agency pointed to its 2024 record, when 99.6% of ballots were delivered within three days.

A few reminders from Clark County's mail ballot guide: voters must return both ballot cards in the official return envelope and sign the outside of that envelope. Unsigned ballots will trigger a follow-up from election officials. Voters who lost their return envelope can call (702) 455-VOTE (8683) for a replacement.

Voters can track their ballot status at myballot.nv.org. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, with vote centers open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.