Yes, you can drop off someone else’s ballot in Colorado, as long as you aren’t handling more than ten ballots for that election. The voter has to mark the ballot and sign the return envelope first; your job is simply to get the sealed envelope to an official drop box or Voter Service and Polling Center by 7 p.m. on Election Day.
The Ten-Ballot Limit
Colorado law lets a voter give their sealed ballot to any person they choose for delivery. The one numerical rule: no single person may collect more than ten mail ballots in any election for mailing or delivery. Authorized agents of the county clerk or designated election official are exempt from the cap and can handle ballots in unlimited quantities as part of their duties.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 1 Section 1-7.5-107
Most people delivering a ballot for someone else are family members, housemates, or caregivers carrying one or two envelopes. If that’s you, you’re well within the law.
Delivering someone else’s ballot also doesn’t count as voting more than once. The statute specifically says the person making the delivery is not considered to have violated the prohibition on double voting.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 1 Section 1-7.5-107
What the Voter Has to Do First
Before you take the ballot anywhere, the voter needs to do two things: mark the ballot and sign the self-affirmation on the return envelope. That signature is what election officials use to confirm the ballot came from the registered voter. If the envelope isn’t signed, the ballot gets flagged and won’t be counted until the voter resolves it.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 1 Section 1-7.5-107
You don’t sign anything as the person delivering. The voter handles authentication; you handle transport.
Where to Drop It Off
You have two options, and either works.
Ballot drop boxes are secure 24-hour receptacles placed throughout each county. They stay open until 7 p.m. on Election Day, and Secretary of State rules require counties to light the locations and use video surveillance.
Voter Service and Polling Centers (VSPCs) accept ballots handed directly to an election official. You can use any VSPC in the state. If you drop the ballot in a county other than where the voter lives, that county clerk is required to forward it to the correct county.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 1 Section 1-7.5-107
The hard deadline is 7 p.m. on Election Day. The ballot has to be physically in the hands of the county clerk or in an official drop-off location by then. A postmark on or before Election Day is not enough if the ballot arrives late.2Colorado Secretary of State. Election Day FAQs Locations are listed on your county clerk and recorder’s website and on the Colorado Secretary of State’s site.
Confirm Delivery and Watch for a Cure Notice
Once you’ve dropped the ballot, the voter can confirm it was received through BallotTrax, a free service that sends notifications by phone, email, or text as the ballot moves through the system.3Colorado Secretary of State. BallotTrax FAQs It’s a useful step whenever someone else is doing the delivery.
After the ballot arrives, an election judge compares the signature on the return envelope to the signature on file in the statewide voter registration system.1Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 1 Section 1-7.5-107 If the signature is missing or doesn’t match, the ballot is set aside and the voter is notified. Colorado runs an online cure system called eCure, accessible through GoVoteColorado.gov, where voters can verify their identity and fix the problem. The deadline is 11:59 p.m. Mountain Time on the eighth day after Election Day, shifting to the next day if that falls on a state or federal holiday.3Colorado Secretary of State. BallotTrax FAQs
Tell the voter to watch for a notification. A signature problem doesn’t automatically kill the ballot, but it does if the voter misses that eight-day window.
Penalties for Going Past the Limit
Collecting more than ten ballots or interfering with someone else’s ballot is a criminal offense. Colorado law punishes any person who knowingly violates the mail ballot statutes or aids fraud in connection with a mail ballot.4Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 1 Section 1-13-803 – Offenses Relating to Voting by Mail Ballot A class 2 misdemeanor under Colorado’s sentencing framework carries up to 120 days in jail, a fine of up to $750, or both.5FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-1.3-501 Tampering with, destroying, or altering a ballot carries separate charges that can escalate beyond a misdemeanor depending on the circumstances.
Federal Assistance Rights for Disabled Voters
If you’re helping a voter who is blind, has a disability, or can’t read or write, Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act guarantees them the right to receive assistance from a person of their choice. The only people barred from serving as an assistant are the voter’s employer (or the employer’s agent) and officers or agents of the voter’s union.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 52 USC 10508
That federal right covers the whole voting process, including marking and returning the ballot. Colorado’s ten-ballot cap still applies to the total number of ballots you handle, but the assistance itself is federally protected.