Let Your Voice Be Heard From Overseas

Absentee Voting Week begins today and ends on October 4, 2010. Under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, all citizens who have not received their absentee ballot in the mail can go to the Federal Voter Assistance Program (FVAP) website to cast their votes. This week, Voting Assistance Officers will be actively educating voters about the electronic alternatives for ballot completion and submission and encouraging them to use the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot. The FVAP has created a tool that guides voters through the process of identifying themselves and their jurisdictions. It also provides an absentee ballot that is populated with a list of candidates. The voter can mark, print and return the ballot to their state according to their state's law, which in some states includes faxing and e-mailing. Several states have developed electronic tools that enable voters to access and complete precinct-specific absentee ballots. These ballots are then submitted to the appropriate state using other methods such as mail, e-mail or fax. Military members and their eligible family members to should visit the website to determine individual states' voter registration deadlines.