Biden just got one step closer to replacing Louis DeJoy
Ever since Postmaster General Louis DeJoy — a major Republican donor — was selected to head the United States Postal Service (USPS) in 2020, he's been enacting massively unpopular policies criticized by postal workers and Democrats alike. Now, President Joe Biden may soon be able to replace him.
On Thursday, Politico congressional correspondent Anthony Adragna reported that Biden was nominating former Rep. Val Demings (D-Florida) to fill the last remaining vacancy on the USPS Board of Governors. She, along with former Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, are now awaiting confirmation by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which is chaired by Sen. Gary Peters (D-Michigan).
Should both Demings and Walsh be confirmed, that would give Biden seven appointees on the nine-member board overseeing USPS. And because the Postmaster General's hiring and firing is up to the board and not Biden, that could mean that DeJoy could be removed from his post by the time Biden leaves office in January of 2025.
READ MORE: Louis DeJoy backs down from plan to consolidate USPS facilities after national backlash
Biden appointees have held a majority on the USPS board since 2022, when three of his appointees were confirmed by Peters' committee. However, his appointees have been slow to fire DeJoy given his close partnership with the Biden administration on clean energy policy. Politico reported last year that DeJoy is rolling out a plan to add roughly 106,000 new electric vehicles to the USPS' fleet of mail delivery trucks, with 66,000 of those trucks on the road by 2028. Biden's landmark Inflation Reduction Act allocated $3 billion to the initiative, and DeJoy has partnered with veteran Democratic strategist John Podesta to implement his plan.
However, DeJoy is still reviled for his efforts to consolidate USPS sorting facilities, which has severely impacted the speed of mail delivery — particularly in populated metropolitan areas in battleground states like Atlanta, Georgia and Richmond, Virginia. In one heated exchange earlier this year, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Georgia) confronted DeJoy about complaints from his constituents that they weren't getting important mail until after weeks of delays.
“You don't have months to fix 36% of the mail being delivered on time," Ossoff said. "I've got constituents with prescriptions that aren't being delivered. I've got constituents who can't pay their rent and their mortgages. I've got businesses who aren't able to ship products or receive supplies.”
During that committee hearing, Ossoff gave DeJoy a two-week deadline to address his concerns. When that deadline came and went with no action, Ossoff again pressed him for solutions. The two finally met earlier this month to talk about how to streamline mail delivery in Atlanta, and the Georgia Democrat asserted that he was still not confident in DeJoy's leadership after their conversation.
READ MORE: 'I don't think you're fit for this job': GA senator gives USPS chief DeJoy an ultimatum
"For months I have sustained relentless pressure on USPS management to fully resolve disastrous performance failures impacting my constituents in Georgia. I’m still hearing from Georgia families and businesses about the difficulty they continue to face sending and receiving their mail, which is why I met today with Postmaster General DeJoy to again reiterate the need for further improvements and greater transparency," Ossoff stated. "I will not rest until my constituents are well and fully served by the U.S. Postal Service."
After pressure from numerous senators urging DeJoy to reconsider his consolidation plans that would harm the speed of mail service in rural communities, DeJoy finally relented and announced he would be postponing the initiative. However, questions still remain about whether voters relying on voting by mail in the November election will be able to receive their ballots in time to vote, and whether the USPS will deliver their ballots to be counted on time.
“We’re approaching a major November election,” Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-Texas), who represents parts of Houston, said in March. “We need to make sure that we iron out any difficulties, any obstacles, any barriers, any issues now, so that we don’t end up in a situation much like we were in with the November ballots.”
READ MORE: 'Dumpster fire': Experts say delays from DeJoy's USPS overhaul may affect swing state ballots