NY's military unable to vote??
October 12th 2010 19:25
One of the major news stories today is a report that the NY military serving overseas has not gotten their absentee ballots. In a report by Jana Winter of Fox News in New York shows that “More than one week after its extended deadline, the state of New York failed by Monday to send out absentee ballots to all its 320,000 military servicemen and women and overseas voters, a violation of federal law.
According to the 2009 MOVE Act, a state must send out its military and overseas ballots 45 days prior to elections. I have attached the wording regarding the Absentee Ballots for the Military
S.1415
Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act (Reported in Senate - RS)
_____________________________ ___________
SEC. 7. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND DELIVERY OF MARKED ABSENTEE BALLOTS OF ABSENT OVERSEAS UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS.
(a) In General- The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 103 the following new section:
`SEC. 103A. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND DELIVERY OF MARKED ABSENTEE BALLOTS OF ABSENT OVERSEAS UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS.
`(a) Establishment of Procedures- The Presidential designee shall establish procedures for collecting marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters in regularly scheduled general elections for Federal office, including absentee ballots prepared by States and the Federal write-in absentee ballot prescribed under section 103, and for delivering such marked absentee ballots to the appropriate State election officials.
`(b) Delivery to Local Election Officials-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Under the procedures established under this section, the Presidential designee shall implement procedures that facilitate the delivery of marked absentee ballots of absent uniformed services voters for regularly scheduled general elections for Federal office to the appropriate State election officials in accordance with this section.
`(2) COOPERATION AND COORDINATION WITH THE UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE- The Presidential designee shall carry out this section in cooperation and coordination with the United States Postal Service, and shall provide expedited mail delivery service for all such marked absentee ballots of absent uniformed services voters that are collected on or before the deadline described in paragraph (3) and then transferred to the United States Postal Service.
`(3) DEADLINE DESCRIBED-
`(A) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the deadline described in this paragraph is noon (in the location in which the ballot is collected) on the seventh day preceding the date of the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office.
`(B) AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH ALTERNATIVE DEADLINE FOR CERTAIN LOCATIONS- If the Presidential designee determines that the deadline described in subparagraph (A) is not sufficient to ensure timely delivery of the ballot under paragraph (1) with respect to a particular location because of remoteness or other factors, the Presidential designee may establish as an alternative deadline for that location the latest date occurring prior to the deadline described in subparagraph (A) which is sufficient to provide timely delivery of the ballot under paragraph (1).
`(4) NO POSTAGE REQUIREMENT- In accordance with section 3406 of title 39, United States Code, such marked absentee ballots and other balloting materials shall be carried free of postage.
`(5) DATE OF MAILING- Such marked absentee ballots shall be postmarked with a record of the date on which the ballot is mailed.
`(c) Outreach for Absent Overseas Uniformed Services Voters on Procedures- The Presidential designee shall take appropriate actions to inform individuals who are anticipated to be absent overseas uniformed services voters in a regularly scheduled general election for Federal office to which this section applies of the procedures for the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots established pursuant to this section, including the manner in which such voters may utilize such procedures for the submittal of marked absentee ballots pursuant to this section.
`(d) Reports on Utilization of Procedures-
`(1) REPORTS REQUIRED- Not later than 180 days after each regularly scheduled general election for Federal office to which this section applies, the Presidential designee shall submit to the relevant committees of Congress a report on the utilization of the procedures for the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots established pursuant to this section during such election.
`(2) ELEMENTS- Each report under paragraph (1) shall include, for the general election covered by such report, a description of the utilization of the procedures described in that paragraph during such general election, including the number of marked absentee ballots collected and delivered under such procedures and the number of such ballots which were not delivered by the time of the closing of the polls on the date of the election (and the reasons such ballots were not so delivered).
`(3) RELEVANT COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DEFINED- In this subsection, the term `relevant committees of Congress' means--
`(A) the Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, and Rules and Administration of the Senate; and
`(B) the Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, and House Administration of the House of Representatives.
`(e) Absent Overseas Uniformed Services Voter Defined- In this section, the term `absent overseas uniformed services voter' means an overseas voter described in section 107(5)(A).
`(f) Authorization of Appropriations- There are authorized to be appropriated to the Presidential designee such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.'.
(b) Conforming Amendment- Section 101(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(b)) is amended--
(1) by striking `and' at the end of paragraph (6);
(2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (7) and inserting `; and'; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
`(8) carry out section 103A with respect to the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters in elections for Federal office.'.
(c) State Responsibilities- Section 102(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff-1(a)), as amended by section 6, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (8), by striking `and' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at the end and inserting `; and'; and
(3) by adding the following new paragraph:
`(10) carry out section 103A(b)(1) with respect to the processing and acceptance of marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters.'.
(d) Tracking Marked Ballots- Section 102 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff-1(a)), as amended by section 6, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
`(h) Tracking Marked Ballots- The chief State election official, in coordination with local election jurisdictions, shall develop a free access system by which an absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter may determine whether the absentee ballot of the absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter has been received by the appropriate State election official.'.
(e) Report on Status of Implementation-
(1) REPORT REQUIRED- Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the individual designated under section 101(a) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(a)) shall submit to the relevant committees of Congress a report on the status of the implementation of the procedures established for the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters under section 103A of such Act, as added by subsection (a).
(2) ELEMENTS- The report under paragraph (1) shall include a status of the implementation of such procedures and a detailed description of the specific steps taken towards such implementation for the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in November 2010.
(3) RELEVANT COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DEFINED- In this subsection, the term `relevant committees of Congress' has the meaning given such term in section 103A(d)(3) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, as added by subsection (a).
(f) Protecting Voter Privacy and Secrecy of Absentee Ballots- Section 101(b) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(b)), as amended by subsection (b), is amended--
(1) by striking `and' at the end of paragraph (7);
(2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (8) and inserting `; and'; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
`(9) to the greatest extent practicable, take such actions as may be necessary--
`(A) to ensure that absent uniformed services voters who cast absentee ballots at locations or facilities under the jurisdiction of the Presidential designee are able to do so in a private and independent manner; and
`(B) to protect the privacy of the contents of absentee ballots cast by absentee uniformed services voters and overseas voters while such ballots are in the possession or control of the Presidential designee.'.
(g) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in November 2010 and each succeeding election for Federal office.
This bill was made law to ensure that the military serving oversea would have the right to cast their vote. They are serving overseas to gain these very rights to the people/woman of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Not only that but we have learned that “New York was granted a waiver to the deadline by the Department of Justice and given an additional 15 days -- until October 1 -- to send out all its ballots. On October 5, New York State Board of Elections co-directors informed federal officials that the state had not fully met their extended deadline, according to an email posted online by a Defense Department agency.
Servicemen from New York City and four state counties are still awaiting the mailing of their ballots.
New York City alone has about 50,000 servicemen and women and overseas voters.
"The gravity of New York's failure cannot be overstated," said Eric Eversole, a former Justice Department voting section attorney who recently started a nonprofit organization, Military Voter Protection Project, to protect military voting rights.
"There is no doubt that the November elections could be altered by this failure."
Department of Justice spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said the organization was in "urgent discussions" about the issue” (Winter, 2010).
What is ironic is that the MOVE Act was passed in 2009. Its lead author and sponsor was Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Senate Rules Committee.
Understand that this is an issue that the Department of Defense has been working for years and I have added an article about the Absentee Ballot Program by Ian Graham.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2010 – America is founded on the idea of voting. Yet absentee voters -- citizens working overseas or out of their home state during election season -- can be left out of the voting process if they are unaware of absentee voting procedures.
The Federal Voting Assistance Program works to make the process of casting absentee ballots easier for servicemembers and other overseas U.S. citizens, said Bob Carey, the program’s director.
Carey spoke Sept. 29 on a “DoDLive” Bloggers Roundtable to discuss the services his program offers, as well as to discuss Absentee Voting Week, observed this year Sept. 27 through Oct. 4. The week, held about one month before the U.S. general elections in November, is designed to remind and inform people on where and when they can vote come Election Day.
“With 34 days before the [mid-term] election, now is the time for voters to be looking at how they’re going to get their ballots and how they’re going to get them back,” Carey said. “Too often, voters don’t think about this until the week before the election -- in which case for military and overseas voters, is too late.”
The FVAP’s web site, at www.FVAP.gov, now automates much of the voting process, Carey said. The registration and absentee application process, ballot receipt and ballot marking, he said, are all available as online services now.
“These tools are available,” Carey said. “They’re easy, they’re quick and they’re intuitive. Hopefully we’ll be able to increase, dramatically, the voter success in this election cycle.”
Carey said much of the confusion and time consumption that may accompany the absentee voting process is due to the intricacies of voting regulations and regulatory offices. In all cases, he said, elections are handled by states, counties and municipalities, so someone working in New York but registered and permanently residing in Texas has to figure out the absentee process, navigate any special rules either state may have, and then complete the vote itself.
One missed signature, or improperly filled form or other mistake, could derail the whole process, and the voter may never know, he said.
“There are no federally run elections; they’re all run at the state, county and municipal level, so it can be very complex for the voter to be able to navigate that,” Carey said. “We’re trying to take that process and make it easy to navigate by doing all of the ‘homework’ for them”
I don’t know about you but I believe that something should be done so that all our men and women serving in the military overseas have the right to vote. Please contact you congressman and senators if they can reconvene to take a vote for something the American public doesn’t want they can reconvene to figure out how to get our military to vote in this and other upcoming elections.
References:
Really Long Link
Really Long Link
Really Long Link
According to the 2009 MOVE Act, a state must send out its military and overseas ballots 45 days prior to elections. I have attached the wording regarding the Absentee Ballots for the Military
Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act (Reported in Senate - RS)
_____________________________ ___________
SEC. 7. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND DELIVERY OF MARKED ABSENTEE BALLOTS OF ABSENT OVERSEAS UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS.
(a) In General- The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 103 the following new section:
`SEC. 103A. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND DELIVERY OF MARKED ABSENTEE BALLOTS OF ABSENT OVERSEAS UNIFORMED SERVICES VOTERS.
`(a) Establishment of Procedures- The Presidential designee shall establish procedures for collecting marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters in regularly scheduled general elections for Federal office, including absentee ballots prepared by States and the Federal write-in absentee ballot prescribed under section 103, and for delivering such marked absentee ballots to the appropriate State election officials.
`(b) Delivery to Local Election Officials-
`(1) IN GENERAL- Under the procedures established under this section, the Presidential designee shall implement procedures that facilitate the delivery of marked absentee ballots of absent uniformed services voters for regularly scheduled general elections for Federal office to the appropriate State election officials in accordance with this section.
`(3) DEADLINE DESCRIBED-
`(A) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the deadline described in this paragraph is noon (in the location in which the ballot is collected) on the seventh day preceding the date of the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office.
`(B) AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH ALTERNATIVE DEADLINE FOR CERTAIN LOCATIONS- If the Presidential designee determines that the deadline described in subparagraph (A) is not sufficient to ensure timely delivery of the ballot under paragraph (1) with respect to a particular location because of remoteness or other factors, the Presidential designee may establish as an alternative deadline for that location the latest date occurring prior to the deadline described in subparagraph (A) which is sufficient to provide timely delivery of the ballot under paragraph (1).
`(4) NO POSTAGE REQUIREMENT- In accordance with section 3406 of title 39, United States Code, such marked absentee ballots and other balloting materials shall be carried free of postage.
`(5) DATE OF MAILING- Such marked absentee ballots shall be postmarked with a record of the date on which the ballot is mailed.
`(c) Outreach for Absent Overseas Uniformed Services Voters on Procedures- The Presidential designee shall take appropriate actions to inform individuals who are anticipated to be absent overseas uniformed services voters in a regularly scheduled general election for Federal office to which this section applies of the procedures for the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots established pursuant to this section, including the manner in which such voters may utilize such procedures for the submittal of marked absentee ballots pursuant to this section.
`(d) Reports on Utilization of Procedures-
`(1) REPORTS REQUIRED- Not later than 180 days after each regularly scheduled general election for Federal office to which this section applies, the Presidential designee shall submit to the relevant committees of Congress a report on the utilization of the procedures for the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots established pursuant to this section during such election.
`(2) ELEMENTS- Each report under paragraph (1) shall include, for the general election covered by such report, a description of the utilization of the procedures described in that paragraph during such general election, including the number of marked absentee ballots collected and delivered under such procedures and the number of such ballots which were not delivered by the time of the closing of the polls on the date of the election (and the reasons such ballots were not so delivered).
`(3) RELEVANT COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DEFINED- In this subsection, the term `relevant committees of Congress' means--
`(A) the Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, and Rules and Administration of the Senate; and
`(B) the Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, and House Administration of the House of Representatives.
`(e) Absent Overseas Uniformed Services Voter Defined- In this section, the term `absent overseas uniformed services voter' means an overseas voter described in section 107(5)(A).
`(f) Authorization of Appropriations- There are authorized to be appropriated to the Presidential designee such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.'.
(b) Conforming Amendment- Section 101(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(b)) is amended--
(1) by striking `and' at the end of paragraph (6);
(2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (7) and inserting `; and'; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
`(8) carry out section 103A with respect to the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters in elections for Federal office.'.
(c) State Responsibilities- Section 102(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff-1(a)), as amended by section 6, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (8), by striking `and' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at the end and inserting `; and'; and
(3) by adding the following new paragraph:
`(10) carry out section 103A(b)(1) with respect to the processing and acceptance of marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters.'.
(d) Tracking Marked Ballots- Section 102 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff-1(a)), as amended by section 6, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
`(h) Tracking Marked Ballots- The chief State election official, in coordination with local election jurisdictions, shall develop a free access system by which an absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter may determine whether the absentee ballot of the absent uniformed services voter or overseas voter has been received by the appropriate State election official.'.
(e) Report on Status of Implementation-
(1) REPORT REQUIRED- Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the individual designated under section 101(a) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(a)) shall submit to the relevant committees of Congress a report on the status of the implementation of the procedures established for the collection and delivery of marked absentee ballots of absent overseas uniformed services voters under section 103A of such Act, as added by subsection (a).
(2) ELEMENTS- The report under paragraph (1) shall include a status of the implementation of such procedures and a detailed description of the specific steps taken towards such implementation for the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in November 2010.
(3) RELEVANT COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DEFINED- In this subsection, the term `relevant committees of Congress' has the meaning given such term in section 103A(d)(3) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, as added by subsection (a).
(f) Protecting Voter Privacy and Secrecy of Absentee Ballots- Section 101(b) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff(b)), as amended by subsection (b), is amended--
(1) by striking `and' at the end of paragraph (7);
(2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (8) and inserting `; and'; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
`(9) to the greatest extent practicable, take such actions as may be necessary--
`(A) to ensure that absent uniformed services voters who cast absentee ballots at locations or facilities under the jurisdiction of the Presidential designee are able to do so in a private and independent manner; and
`(B) to protect the privacy of the contents of absentee ballots cast by absentee uniformed services voters and overseas voters while such ballots are in the possession or control of the Presidential designee.'.
(g) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held in November 2010 and each succeeding election for Federal office.
This bill was made law to ensure that the military serving oversea would have the right to cast their vote. They are serving overseas to gain these very rights to the people/woman of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Not only that but we have learned that “New York was granted a waiver to the deadline by the Department of Justice and given an additional 15 days -- until October 1 -- to send out all its ballots. On October 5, New York State Board of Elections co-directors informed federal officials that the state had not fully met their extended deadline, according to an email posted online by a Defense Department agency.
Servicemen from New York City and four state counties are still awaiting the mailing of their ballots.
New York City alone has about 50,000 servicemen and women and overseas voters.
"The gravity of New York's failure cannot be overstated," said Eric Eversole, a former Justice Department voting section attorney who recently started a nonprofit organization, Military Voter Protection Project, to protect military voting rights.
"There is no doubt that the November elections could be altered by this failure."
Department of Justice spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said the organization was in "urgent discussions" about the issue” (Winter, 2010).
What is ironic is that the MOVE Act was passed in 2009. Its lead author and sponsor was Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Senate Rules Committee.
Understand that this is an issue that the Department of Defense has been working for years and I have added an article about the Absentee Ballot Program by Ian Graham.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2010 – America is founded on the idea of voting. Yet absentee voters -- citizens working overseas or out of their home state during election season -- can be left out of the voting process if they are unaware of absentee voting procedures.
The Federal Voting Assistance Program works to make the process of casting absentee ballots easier for servicemembers and other overseas U.S. citizens, said Bob Carey, the program’s director.
Carey spoke Sept. 29 on a “DoDLive” Bloggers Roundtable to discuss the services his program offers, as well as to discuss Absentee Voting Week, observed this year Sept. 27 through Oct. 4. The week, held about one month before the U.S. general elections in November, is designed to remind and inform people on where and when they can vote come Election Day.
“With 34 days before the [mid-term] election, now is the time for voters to be looking at how they’re going to get their ballots and how they’re going to get them back,” Carey said. “Too often, voters don’t think about this until the week before the election -- in which case for military and overseas voters, is too late.”
The FVAP’s web site, at www.FVAP.gov, now automates much of the voting process, Carey said. The registration and absentee application process, ballot receipt and ballot marking, he said, are all available as online services now.
“These tools are available,” Carey said. “They’re easy, they’re quick and they’re intuitive. Hopefully we’ll be able to increase, dramatically, the voter success in this election cycle.”
Carey said much of the confusion and time consumption that may accompany the absentee voting process is due to the intricacies of voting regulations and regulatory offices. In all cases, he said, elections are handled by states, counties and municipalities, so someone working in New York but registered and permanently residing in Texas has to figure out the absentee process, navigate any special rules either state may have, and then complete the vote itself.
One missed signature, or improperly filled form or other mistake, could derail the whole process, and the voter may never know, he said.
“There are no federally run elections; they’re all run at the state, county and municipal level, so it can be very complex for the voter to be able to navigate that,” Carey said. “We’re trying to take that process and make it easy to navigate by doing all of the ‘homework’ for them”
I don’t know about you but I believe that something should be done so that all our men and women serving in the military overseas have the right to vote. Please contact you congressman and senators if they can reconvene to take a vote for something the American public doesn’t want they can reconvene to figure out how to get our military to vote in this and other upcoming elections.
References:
Really Long Link
Really Long Link
Really Long Link
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