I voted absentee lots of times during my time in the service and never once thought it was wasted. Not once. So, if for some reason you know you can’t go to the bolls on election day, here’s what you need to do:
Step 1: Get registered and request your ballot
Step 2: Receive, fill out, and send back your ballot
How do you know your vote got counted, though?
One of the prime reasons why deployed service members fail to exercise their voting rights is they assume that absentee ballots get delayed, lost, or “forgotten” somewhere along the way. Thankfully, we’re in the 21st century now, so it’s pretty easy to see if your ballot made it into the tally: You can check the status of your ballot after sending it back.
How long do I have to do all this?
And then there’s this:
The Federal Voting Assistance Program works to ensure Service members, their eligible family members and overseas citizens are aware of their right to vote and have the tools and resources to successfully do so — from anywhere in the world. FVAP assists voters through partnerships with the Military Services, Department of State, Department of Justice and election officials from 50 States, U.S. territories and the District of Columbia. Follow The Federal Voting Assistance Program on Twitter @FVAP
Examples of very close elections and more @ Think Your Absentee Ballot Doesn’t Matter? Here’s Proof It Does
