It's official: on Aug. 26, 2026, the Colorado Secretary of State's office announced that Initiative 362 gathered enough valid signatures to reach the November ballot. The measure would amend the state constitution to require every mail voter to write the last four digits of their Social Security number — or a full driver's license or state ID number — on their ballot envelope, and require election judges to reject ballots without one. It exposes voters to identity theft and solves a problem that doesn't exist.
What was a proposal is now a question on your ballot. On Aug. 26, 2026, the Colorado Secretary of State's office announced that backers of Initiative 362 had turned in a sufficient number of valid voter signatures to put the measure before voters this November. Because it amends the state constitution, it needs at least 55% approval to pass — which means a determined majority of Coloradans can stop it.
Defend Our Ballots is a nonpartisan Colorado 501(c)(4) coalition of voters, civil rights advocates, and election experts. Our mission is simple: protect the mail ballot system Coloradans already trust. Now that Initiative 362 has qualified for the ballot, the decision belongs to voters — and making it harder to vote doesn't make elections safer.
This isn't a partisan issue. The evidence is clear: Colorado's signature verification system is rigorous, accurate, and already working. Adding a new ID-number requirement won't improve security — it will only create new barriers and new risks.
Certified for the November 3, 2026 ballot — a constitutional amendment that adds a risky, unnecessary new barrier to a mail voting process Coloradans have relied on for over a decade.
It qualified on Aug. 26, 2026. The Colorado Secretary of State's office announced that backers of Initiative 362 submitted enough valid voter signatures to place the measure on this year's ballot. It is one of as many as 14 statewide measures Coloradans may face in November.
Initiative 362 would amend the Colorado constitution to require mail voters to verify their identity by writing either the last four digits of their Social Security number or their full driver's license or state ID number on their ballot envelope. Election judges would be required to reject any ballot that lacks one. Signatures are already required today, and already checked against a state database — this adds a second hurdle on top.
Voters whose number is missing or illegible could "cure" the problem through the same process counties use for signature discrepancies. But a cure process is not a safety net: it depends on a voter being reached in time, understanding the notice, and returning paperwork before the deadline. Every extra step is a place where a valid vote gets lost — and the voters most likely to be tripped up are the ones who rely on mail ballots most.
Supporters say it ensures people vote only their own ballots. The evidence says otherwise. Colorado already collects and verifies this exact information at registration, and signature verification is already among the most rigorous in the country. Initiative 362 addresses a problem that documented evidence does not show exists — and creates several real ones.
Colorado voters already provide this exact information — SSN or driver's license number — when they register, and the state already verifies it against DMV and Social Security records. Writing it again on an envelope adds zero new security. It only adds new risk: voter error, ballot rejection, and identity theft.
Forget the number, miscopy a digit, or skip the field — and election judges are required to reject your ballot unless you complete a cure in time. Elderly, disabled, and first-time voters are most exposed: every added step and deadline is another chance for a valid vote to go uncounted.
Return envelopes pass through hundreds of hands — postal carriers, sorting facilities, ballot-processing teams. Writing an SSN or driver's license number on an envelope clearly marked as a ballot is a flashing target for identity thieves. Discarded envelopes only widen the risk.
Older voters, rural voters, low-income voters, and voters with limited English proficiency rely most on mail ballots — and are most likely to be tripped up by a new, surprise requirement. The result: lower participation, with no security gain.
You already provided your SSN or driver's license number when you registered. The state already verified it. Colorado then checks every returned ballot with a signature match — a biometric tied to you alone. Writing a number on the envelope adds nothing but error and exposure.
The measure was filed by Chuck Broerman, a Republican and El Paso County's former chief elections official, and Suzanne Taheri, a Republican attorney at a conservative Colorado law firm who previously served as deputy secretary of state.
The signatures that put it on the ballot were not gathered by volunteers. A state issue committee called the Colorado Voter Trust Initiative paid circulators using $2.2 million from the Coalition for American Prosperity and Growth — a group registered to a Colorado Springs shipping store that rents mailboxes, and whose own funding source is not disclosed. Coloradans are being asked to rewrite their constitution by a campaign that won't say who is paying for it.
Before you vote on Initiative 362, look at the record. The evidence is clear: Colorado's mail ballot system is secure, accurate, and one of the best in the country. Here's the data.
| Metric | Colorado | National Context |
|---|---|---|
| Overall election performance | Top 3 nationally | MIT Election Data & Science Lab — Elections Performance Index |
| Share of ballots cast by mail | ~94% of ballots | Universal mail since 2013 — among the highest rates in the country |
| Estimated mail ballot fraud rate | <0.001% of ballots | Vanishingly rare nationally per peer-reviewed research |
| Signature verification standard | Bipartisan two-examiner review | CO statute requires bipartisan agreement before rejecting any ballot |
| Voter participation | Consistently top 5 nationally | High turnout closely tracks accessible mail voting |
| Ballot cure process | Yes — voters notified with time to fix | Counties proactively contact voters; most issues resolved |
| ID verification at registration | SSN-last-4 or DL required & verified | Already on file — re-writing it on an envelope adds no security |
| Status of Initiative 362 | On the ballot — Nov. 3, 2026 | Certified Aug. 26, 2026; needs 55% approval as a constitutional amendment |
When your mail ballot comes back, county staff compare the signature on your envelope to the one on your voter registration — the same record where Colorado already verified your SSN or driver's license number.
If anything looks off, two trained examiners must independently agree before the ballot is set aside. No single reviewer can reject a ballot alone — a standard more rigorous than most states.
If your signature is flagged, state law requires your county to contact you in time to cure the ballot before the final count. Most voters resolve it well before results are certified.
The result: biometric verification (your unique handwriting), bipartisan review, and a voter-notification cure process. A number written on an envelope adds no real layer on top of that — a bad actor who has intercepted your ballot can copy a number as easily as the envelope.
What can't be copied is your handwriting. That's why signatures are the global gold standard in document authentication — and why Colorado's system has earned a national reputation for both security and accessibility. It works. There's nothing to fix, and a lot to lose.
Initiative 362 is on the ballot and Election Day is Nov. 3, 2026. Here's how you can defend Colorado's mail ballot system — most steps take under five minutes.
Add your name to our statewide petition opposing Initiative 362. Every signature tells elected officials and the measure's backers that Coloradans will defend their ballot access at the polls in November.
Call or email your state representative and senator. We'll send you a one-page talking-points guide with everything you need. Five minutes — and constituent calls move the needle.
Find My Rep →Share on social, forward this site to your network, or download our organizer toolkit — shareable graphics, one-pagers, and talking points for community events.
Join the team — canvassing, phone banks, event staffing, and voter outreach statewide. No experience required, just a commitment to protecting every Coloradan's vote.
Tell Colorado's elected officials: we stand with our proven mail ballot system. Vote no on Initiative 362.
How we use your information: Your name, ZIP, and personal statement may be shared with Colorado media and elected officials to demonstrate public opposition to Initiative 362. We will not sell or share your email address. Defend Our Ballots is a Colorado 501(c)(4); see our Privacy Policy for full details.
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A Colorado 501(c)(4) coalition — voters, civil rights advocates, and election experts — defending every Coloradan's right to vote through our proven mail ballot system.
Defend Our Ballots protects Colorado's mail ballot system — one of the most secure, accurate, and accessible in the country — against efforts that suppress voter participation without improving election integrity.
Our Story
Defend Our Ballots was founded in 2026 by Colorado voters, civil rights attorneys, and civic groups who recognized a coordinated pattern: ballot initiatives and bills designed to make voting harder, framed as "integrity" measures but unsupported by any evidence of an actual problem.
Colorado's universal mail ballot system — built since 2013 through bipartisan stewardship — produces some of the highest turnout in the country, earns national recognition for security and accuracy, and serves voters from Denver to the Western Slope to the San Luis Valley. That record deserves to be defended.
We are nonpartisan. Voters across the political spectrum benefit from Colorado's mail system. Protecting the vote isn't a partisan cause.
Leadership
Our leadership team includes civil rights litigators, civic organizers, and community advocates with deep roots across Colorado. Board and staff information is available on request — contact us at the press address below.
Defending the vote takes resources — for legal work, voter education, earned media, and grassroots organizing in every corner of the state.
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