Enfranchising the Military
According to this post by Blackfive military personnel must mail their absentee ballot by 11 October (the date to register has already passed). If you know anyone who is serving, please make sure they know this. [Hat tip to an enigmatic Bat21 who sent me an email.]After all, we don't want a repeat of the 2000 debacle in which Democrat lawyer Mark Herron supplied specific instructions on how to protest military votes. As Jeb Babbin writes on NRO:
Conveniently, the memo attached a form that could be duplicated and used to protest the validity of individual ballots. By the time the Herron memo made headlines, the Dems were challenging more than 1,500 absentee ballots (which grew to more than 2,400) mostly from soldiers overseas. This was almost three times the number of votes — 537 — that proved to be Bush's margin of victory. Had the Herron scam succeeded, and protests against those votes been sustained, Al Gore would be in the White House today.Last month I wrote about a new USPS system that was being implemented to expedite absentee voting by our military personnel. But there is more going on that I knew about: Rumsfeld has been planning for this day and the military will be ready:This problem is not unique to Florida, and it didn't just happen in 2000. According to the results of a survey by the Reserve Officers' Association, ROA estimates that the disenfranchisement rate among military personnel who try to vote in Florida, Missouri, and South Carolina is 40-45 percent.
It's not the hypocrisy of what the Florida Dems did that still rankles; what's most bothersome is who they tried to do it to. Every American has the right to vote, but were it not for the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen who put themselves in harm's way, none of us would have that right. The warriors and their families have long memories, and this time they're determined to vote.
Rumsfeld's initiative is trying to reach all 1.4 million active-duty members as well as 1.3 million military family members, the majority of whom are living away from home, either overseas or stateside. And this initiative is serious: Every military unit, small or large, has a Voting Assistance Officer whose job it is to let the soldiers know how they can get their absentee ballots, and then help them do so. Abell told me that the goal was for the ratio to be one Voting Assistance Officer for every unit of 25 to 50 people.Just another reason why I like Rummy.The plan's niftiest aspect is the use of the internet to enable soldiers to request absentee ballots — and then to download the actual ballot to fill out and send in. Right now, any soldier or family member can download the Federal Post Card Application from the government website designed to help all overseas voters and send it in. Better still, the Defense Department is getting all the state-ballot request forms and the ballots themselves loaded onto the system. Most of the states are cooperating by allowing internet and even faxed ballot requests.
Rumsfeld's memo says, "I want to ensure each service member is handed the Federal Post Card Application and is offered assistance in completing the form if needed." Voting Assistance Officers will help fill out the request forms and — when soldiers ask — help them properly fill out and mail back the actual ballots. Rumsfeld has tasked the commanders to designate October 11-15 as Absentee Voting Week. If the ballots are mailed by October 15, they'll all be where they need to be in time to be counted. And that is the ultimate goal.
Blog post #3380 in category
Science & Technology
posted 19 August 04