Beginning this weekend, all eligible voters in the United States will encounter informative videos prominently displayed on both Instagram and Facebook. These videos will offer guidance and state-specific details regarding the process of voting by mail, and will be available in both English and Spanish.

These instructional videos concerning vote-by-mail procedures will be shown on Facebook for a consecutive four-day period within each state, commencing between October 10th and October 18th, based on individual state registration deadlines. On Instagram, the videos will be presented across all 50 states on October 15th and 16th, with further notifications containing vote-by-mail information appearing over the subsequent two days.

The videos will inform voters about deadlines for in-person ballot returns, emphasize the importance of careful signature placement on any required outer envelopes, and encourage prompt ballot submission while keeping postmarking deadlines in mind. Facebook will also continue to supply additional voting information specific to each state through a dedicated voting information center for the 2020 election.

This year, application developers are more actively encouraging their users to participate in the U.S. general election than in previous election cycles. From Snapchat to Credit Karma, users are frequently reminded to register to vote – a positive development. Snapchat reports having facilitated the registration of approximately 400,000 new voters through its reminders, and Facebook estimates it assisted 2.5 million people with voter registration this year.

Voting rights organizations express concern that the significant increase in vote-by-mail usage in 2020 could result in a large number of ballots being invalidated – a possibility suggested by the approximately half a million ballots rejected during state primary elections. Some of these rejections were due to missed deadlines or errors made by voters when completing their ballots.

According to ACLU research, in Florida during the 2018 election, younger voters, voters of color, and first-time voters were twice as likely to have their ballots rejected compared to white voters.

Further contributing to these concerns is the variation in state regulations, which can be complex and confusing for those new to voting by mail. In Pennsylvania, a state considered crucial in determining the outcome of the 2020 election, new regulations regarding “naked ballots” stipulate that any ballot not enclosed in a secrecy sleeve will be discarded. In contrast, secrecy sleeves have historically been optional in other states.

Facebook prepares for November

Beginning in 2016, Facebook has been subject to considerable scrutiny regarding its tendency to promote highly biased content, spread inaccurate information, and foster the growth of radical extremism. This week, the FBI disclosed a scheme to abduct Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, which was developed by armed groups utilizing the platform for coordination.

Regardless of whether the disclosure of this long-term domestic terrorism investigation influenced its choices, Facebook has adopted a demonstrably more assertive approach through several recent policy changes. This week, the company extended its prohibition of QAnon, the complex network of bizarre pro-Trump theories that have increasingly resulted in actual acts of violence, following years of allowing such content to flourish on the platform.

Facebook has also recently widened its regulations against voter intimidation to include prohibitions on requests for election monitoring that employ aggressive terminology, such as the Trump campaign’s initiative to enlist an “Army for Trump” to scrutinize their political opponents on election day. Furthermore, the company declared it would halt political advertising following election night, a measure expected to continue until the election results are definitively known.

Despite President Trump’s repeated attempts to question the reliability of mail-in voting, voting by mail has a long and proven record of security. States such as Oregon and Colorado routinely conduct their elections entirely through the mail, and all fifty states offer absentee voting options for individuals unable to vote in person, including those traveling or serving in the armed forces abroad.