But if things proceed as normal, the Postal Service is particularly well equipped to handle paper mail like ballots, especially in a year with depressed postal volumes.

“They’ve got the processing capacity,” said Kevin Kosar, vice president at a free-market-oriented think tank, the R Street Institute, who has long studied postal operations.

But that does not mean that the Postal Service will be able to manage all the extra mail quickly if it comes in a giant rush. “It’s like a restaurant,” he said. “If 500 people show up at exactly 8 a.m. at McDonald’s, they’re going to have a backup. But if 500 people show up over a 12-hour period, piece of cake.”

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