Overseas voters now can get ballots instantly

[unhappycamper]

Overseas voters now can get ballots instantly
By Karen Jowers - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Sep 17, 2008 6:55:59 EDT

The non-partisan Overseas Vote Foundation has launched an online tool that gives service members and other U.S. citizens stationed abroad another option to vote successfully in this year’s election.

Voters can download a Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot online. When the voter enters his last U.S. address, the Web site pulls up the list of candidates for federal races in that district. Voters can choose their candidates on the site and print out their choices, or print out the full list and fill it out by hand. Either way, the form must be signed and mailed to the local election office; ballots can’t be submitted online. Instructions are also included.

“This is such a huge step,” said Susan Dzieduszycka-Suinat, president and chief executive officer of the Overseas Vote Foundation. She announced the launch of the online tool Monday at a voting summit in Washington, D.C.

The tool solves “a persistent, long-term problem,” she said. “We already know a huge percentage of military voters are not going to get their ballots in time. Now they have a solution.”

When absentee ballots are mailed overseas from home districts, mail delays often make it hard for voters to fill them in and mail them back in time to be counted. And some overseas voters find that information about voting absentee is hard to come by.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/09/military_absenteeballots_091608w/%2e