Saturday, October 04, 2008

Americans Voting from Paris

I just got my FWAB - Federal write-in absentee ballot -- for the election. Exciting, and easy to do online. Crucial! Don't take my word for it; listen to Gwyneth.



Or go directly to www.VoteFromAbroad.org . American citizens in Paris who want to speak with a live human being can go to a number of voter registration/absentee ballot information events:

Wednesdays 5pm - 7 pm at Brentano's books, 37 avenue de l'Opera, 75002
Saturdays and Sundays 2pm - 5pm at Shakespeare & Co. 37 rue de la Bucherie, 75005
Saturdays and Sundays noon - 3 pm at Breakfast in America, 17 rue des Ecoles, 75005.

All American citizens living abroad who will be 18 or older on November 4 have the right to vote in the Presidential Election.

Other voting resources:

Overseas Vote Foundation

Association of Americans Residing Overseas

Where in the world will YOU vote?

4 comments:

J said...

"All American citizens living abroad who will be 18 or older on November 4 have the right to vote in the Presidential Election."

But the problem is that some states don't allow people to vote absentee the very first time they vote. The first time must be in their precint in the US.

Polly-Vous Francais said...

Thanks for that info, Jennie.

I emailed the voter-registration people to see if they could provide some help or background on that concern. It doesn't seem fair to me! Whether abroad or away at college, so many first-time voters shouldn't be kept out of voting just because they're not at home on November 4.

J said...

I know, it's extremely unfair! Michigan is one of the states that has that stupid rule. Luckily, as long as you vote in any election in the US for the first time, it counts, so it's not just the big federal elections. But still... it's not fair.

Polly-Vous Francais said...

Here's the response from VotefromAbroad.org:

Thanks for posting the video and website! All US citizens who have lived in the US are entitled to vote where they last legally resided before they moved overseas whether or not they have ever voted before. Some US citizens who have never lived in the US can vote where they US parent(s) last lived; not all states allow this. Let us know if you have other questions.

I wonder -- maybe it's that some states don't allow voting in the *local* election if you haven't voted there before, but your ballot for the Federal election is still counted.

Locations of visitors to this page
Travel Blogs - Blog Catalog Blog Directory blog search directory Targeted Website Traffic - Webmasters helping webmasters develop high value relevant links. Promoting ethical web-marketing using the time trusted pillars of relevance and popularity.