Press Releases 2004

Election 2004: An Important Message From U.S. Embassy, New Delhi

August 4, 2004

NEW DELHI -- Now is the time to be thinking about the November Federal election. The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Voting Act (UOCVA) requires that U.S. states and territories allow U.S. service members, their family members of voting age, and U.S. citizens who reside outside of the United States to vote by absentee ballot in Federal elections for President, Vice President, and members of the U.S. Congress running for the Senate or House of Representatives. Some states also allow persons covered by UOCAVA to vote in other elections, such for governor or state senator. Voting assistance officers are located at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi to assist you.

If you want your vote to be counted in the upcoming November 2004 election, we encourage you to request your absentee ballot before it is too late. The process is quite simple. You can fill out a Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) to request registration and to order an absentee ballot. The FPCA is available either on-line or you can obtain it from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. To register and request an absentee ballot on line, you need to go to the Federal Voting Assistance Program's (FVAP) website at www.fvap.gov. That website also contains state-by-state instructions, including procedures and deadlines.

Once you have completed a FPCA either in person at the Embassy or on-line, you will need to mail it to the local election official in the county or state of your last voting residence in the United States. If you have never voted or been registered to vote before in the United States, the FVAP should be sent to the election officials in the city or county where you last resided before leaving the United States. This applies even if many years have elapsed, you maintain no abode in that state, or have no intention of returning to that state.

Students who resided in a city, county or state other than that of their parents prior to departing the United States would normally vote in the locality where their parents vote. U.S. military or government employees overseas, their spouses, and voting-age dependents, normally register to vote in the state that they claim as their legal residence.

If you are not sure of the name of the city or county of voting residence or where to send your FPCA, you should be able to locate that information on the www.fvap.gov website. Should you require help, a consular officer at the U.S. Embassy or one of the Consulates can look up the address on your behalf in the most recent Voting Assistance Guide.

When completing the FPCA, remember to include your e-mail address and/or fax number so your local election officials can get back in touch with you if they have questions. Many states allow overseas voters to fax in their FPCA, and some will fax back the blank absentee ballot to you. Check the FVAP website to find out whether your state will permit you to request the absentee ballot by faxing the FPCA.

If you require help in mailing the FPCA to request your absentee ballot, the U.S. Embassy is happy to assist you in sending it to the US. You may bring the FPCA to the Embassy and we will then send it to the United States via the diplomatic pouch where it will then be placed in the U.S. mail. It will take approximately three weeks to reach its destination in the U.S.

Once you receive your absentee ballot, you will need to return it to the registrar in your voting State quickly so that your vote will be counted. Because of the limited time between the mailing date for the absentee ballots and the election, some voters, particularly those in remote locations, may need to use a courier service in order to get their absentee ballots returned to the United States in time to meet their state's ballot receipt deadline. If you do not receive your absentee ballot in time for the election and have ordered the ballot, then there is an emergency ballot, the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB) that is available at the Embassy. This is only to be used in cases where the absentee ballot has already been requested but does not arrive in time.

Thanks for registering to vote! Please encourage your fellow Americans to vote as well.
August 2004