With eyes on the November election, local postal workers plan to hold a rally Saturday morning at Vogel Plaza in downtown Medford to raise awareness of potential delays in Oregon’s vote-by-mail system amid Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s “Delivering for America” plan.

Jeremy Schilling, president of the American Postal Workers Union Local 342, told the Rogue Valley Times on Wednesday, “The (May) primary election showed us that the Postal Service’s consolidation of processing equipment and transportation routes is short-sighted and clearly not for the people of Oregon. As a vote-by-mail leader in the United States, Oregon enjoys some of the highest voter turnout in the nation.”

He added: “It is imperative that the Postal Service uphold its obligation to the people of Oregon in ensuring all ballots are … processed and delivered within the timelines of the election, something that did not happen in the primary.”

During the primary, Schilling said postal management directed clerks to sequester election ballots and put them in their personal vehicles to be dropped off at election drop boxes.

He said postal workers, who held a series of rallies last summer when the proposed changes were first unveiled, had gone “above and beyond,” but he hoped for more intervention from state leaders.

The Saturday rally is scheduled for 10 a.m. at the corner of East Main Street and Central Avenue.

On Monday, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley urged his Senate colleagues to support his push to halt DeJoy’s plan, which the Oregon Democrat has nicknamed the “Delaying Mail for America” plan.

In a presentation, Merkley outlined concerns from constituents ranging from disruptions in ballot delivery and medication delivery to the impact on small businesses.

“U.S. Postal Service leadership claims that downgrades won’t slow deliveries, but every delivery route will be slower if you add more than 500 miles to it … You only need to look at what’s happening in my home state,” Merkley told fellow senators.

“Meanwhile, the Postal Service continues to raise prices. As of July 14, a single stamp now costs 73 cents. The Postal Service calls this new system ‘more efficient and cost-effective.’ I call it: ‘paying more and getting less.’ These price hikes and delivery delays hurt rural communities most.”

Merkley called for the reversal of “DeJoy’s downgrades,” saying, “We need to restore reliable, affordable mail delivery. Now is the time to take the ‘Delivering for America’ plan and return it to the sender.”

Since October, Merkley, as well as U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, have spoken out about the need to halt and reverse changes made to Postal Service facilities since last summer.

In May, Merkley signed a bipartisan letter that resulted in U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, a Michigan Democrat who chairs of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, calling for a pause in changes to the USPS processing and delivery network.

A report on an impact study from the Postal Regulatory Commission should be finalized in the coming weeks, Merkley’s office said this week.

Schilling applauded Merkley’s support of postal workers and the senator’s efforts to challenge the changes in service and distribution in Oregon.

In addition to reduced truck routes, a postmarking machine was removed from Medford’s Sage Road postal facility, and equipment used to detect biohazards and “front” — or sort the mail facing forward with the right side up — has also been destroyed and disposed of.

“The Postal Service refused to implement any special election safeguards until it was too late. Postal figureheads from other states will tell you everything is fine and there is nothing to worry about. That’s not true,” Schilling said.

He pointed to ballots sitting overnight in post offices because of consolidated truck routes, the chain of custody breaking as postal supervisors took ballots in their personal vehicles after hours, and properly postmarked ballots disappearing for weeks.

“Something must be done,” he said.