Tonight’s the first debate between Romney and Obama in Denver and for those who want to vote from abroad the deadline is getting closer.
The elections will be held on 6th November, meaning we are just a few days from the four-week period before which it is recommended to request your absentee ballot. Here is a quick guide on how to it.
To be able to vote, you must first fill in a Voting Registration/ Absentee Ballot Request. The form is available in pdf format at www.fvap.gov.
However we recommend using the excellent Overseas Vote Foundation, which provides a step by step guide to filling the form and at the end delivers a completed pdf document you just have to date and sign before sending to your local official in your home state in the US. To complete the form you will need to enter your personal information, including your last valid address in the United States so it’s best to have it handy.
Most states offer the possibility to scan and send the form via e-mail, which at this point is the most efficient way of requesting your ballot. If this option is available it will say so on the mailing details provided in the document you have generated.
If you have not received your absentee ballot 30 days before the election date, (ie. 7th October) you will have to fill in another form, the Federal Write In Absentee Ballot (FWAB) that specifies who you want to vote for.
You can also do this on Overseas Vote Foundation, especially useful as it provides exact names for all the candidates (President, Senators and Representatives).
Note that you must have first completed and submitted the Absentee Ballot Request before filling in the Federal Write In Absentee Ballot.
The US Embassy in Buenos Aires is organising a “Absentee Vote Day” tomorrow 4th October from 9am to noon. More info here.
