Absentee Voting Military and Overseas Citizens

This page provides information to military and overseas citizen voters eligible to vote in Delaware to assist them in registering to vote and in voting. Topics include:

Resources Persons Covered Federal Voting Assistance Program Federal Post Card Application

Registering to vote and voting How to vote and return your ballot Hints About the Process Critical Dates and Deadlines

RESOURCES

The Commissioner of Elections has designated the Department of Elections for New Castle County the single point of contact for information for overseas citizen and military voters. You can also contact the Department by telephone at (302) 577-3464.

OTHER RESOURCES

• New Castle County UOCAVA Newsletter
• Federal Voting Assistance Program
• U. S. Department of Justice
• Overseas Vote Foundation

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PERSONS COVERED

Military and overseas citizen voters are United States citizens who are members of the Uniformed Services (Navy, Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard), Merchant Marine, commissioned corps of the Public Health Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, family members of the above and United States citizens residing outside the United States.

THOSE ELIGIBLE TO VOTE IN DELAWARE:

Military members and family members are eligible to register and vote in Delaware if they are residents of the State of Delaware (Delaware was the place of their last residence prior to joining the military or the place where they subsequently established a residence), citizens of the United States, and will be at least 18 years of age prior to the next General Election.

Overseas citizens are eligible to register and vote in Delaware if they are United States citizens, will be at least 18 years of age prior to the next General Election and whose last residence prior to going overseas was in Delaware.

Family members generally have the same eligibility from a residency standpoint as their spouse or parents. Dependent children born outside of Delaware and/or the United States generally have the same residency status as their parents.

Questions about residency? Contact the Department of Elections for the county in which you believe that you are eligible to vote.

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FEDERAL VOTING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

The Federal Voting Assistance Program is responsible for administering the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act. Their WEB site provides valuable information for the military and overseas citizen voter.

Adobe's ACROBAT READER is necessary to view or print PDF documents listed on this page. You may download a free copy of Adobe ACROBAT READER .

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FEDERAL POST CARD APPLICATION

Military and overseas citizen voters who are eligible to vote in Delaware may register to vote and/or apply for an absentee ballot by completing a Federal Post Card Application and mailing it to the Department of Elections for the county in which you are eligible to vote. Read the Instructions for Completing the FPCA before completing it.

The Overseas Vote Foundation is a private non-partisan organization that provides an interactive site for filling out and printing an FPCA.

Mailing addresses and other contact information for the Departments of Elections are on the CONTACT INFORMATION page.

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REGISTERING TO VOTE AND VOTING

REGISTERING TO VOTE

• You must be registered to vote before you can vote in person or by Absentee Ballot.
• You may register to vote by submitting a Federal Post Card Application to the Department of Elections for the county in which you are eligible to vote. The deadline for military and overseas citizens to register to vote prior in order to vote in any Primary or General Election is the third Monday prior to the day of the election.
• The Federal Post Card Application can be both an application to register to vote and a request for an Absentee Ballot.

VOTING BY ABSENTEE BALLOT

• You must be registered to vote before you can be sent an Absentee Ballot.
• You may request an Absentee Ballot be sent to you by submitting a Federal Post Card Application during the year that a Primary and General Election will be held.
• If you are not registered to vote, make sure that you mail the Federal Post Card Application not later than the third Monday prior to the date of the election. The Federal Post Card Application will serve as both an application to register to vote and a request for an Absentee Ballot.
• If your mailing address changes after you request an Absentee Ballot, update your mailing address by submitting another Federal Post Card Application showing your new mailing address. The Department of Elections does not know that you have a new mailing address unless you tell them.
• Upon receiving your Absentee Ballot, immediately complete it and mail it back.
• If you mail your Absentee Ballot via a foreign mail system, you must put the appropriate foreign postage on the envelope. NOTE: APO's and FPO's ARE NOT foreign mail systems!

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HOW TO VOTE AND RETURN YOUR BALLOT

There are four (4) important steps in voting your ballot:

• Completely fill in the oval to the right of the name of the person for whom you are voting using black or blue ink.
• Fold the ballot along the score lines.
• Put the ballot into the Ballot Envelope, seal it, and sign and date below the oath.
• Put the correct postage on the Ballot Envelope if you are mailing it via a foreign postal system.

Here are the instructions for voting and returning your ballot that we send with your ballot.

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HINTS ABOUT MAKING THE PROCESS WORK

IMPORTANT: Military and overseas citizen voters must act in a timely manner to make sure that they are properly registered and that they receive their ballot in sufficient time to return it before the statutory deadline. The FPCA serves as a voter registration form, a form for changing/updating your name, address and political party affiliation, and an application for an Absentee Ballot .

Things you can do to make sure that your ballot is received on time and counted:

• For the Primary and General Elections. Send a properly completed and legible FPCA so that it arrives at the Department of Elections for your county before August 1 in the year of a General Election. This is not a deadline. Receipt by August 1 makes sure that your ballots for the Primary and General Elections will be mailed on the earliest possible date. Affidavits are effective for the two General Elections following receipt. IMPORTANT: You must keep the Department of Elections for your county informed of your mailing address if you are to receive your ballot in a timely manner!
• For the Primary Election. Delaware is a CLOSED PRIMARY state. Only Democrats may vote in the Democratic Primary and only Republicans may vote in the Republican Primary. You will not receive a ballot for the State Primary if you are registered other than as a Democrat or Republican, or if there is no primary election in which you are eligible to vote.
• Provide a phone number, e-mail address and a FAX number at which you can be contacted on the FPCA. Direct communication permits the department to quickly resolve problems with your application.
• Contact the Department of Elections for your county if you do not receive your ballot within a reasonable time. Ballots for the State Primary Election will be mailed starting the first Saturday after the first Friday in August; ballots for the General Election will be mailed starting approximately 45 days before the day of the General Election.
• Report changes in your mailing address to the Department of Elections for your county by submitting another FPCA.
• Follow the instructions on completing and mailing your ballot. Make sure that the Voucher Envelope (the one that you date and sign) is sealed, and that you date it and sign it.
• If you mail your FPCA or ballot through a foreign postal system, make sure that you send it via Air Mail and that you have applied proper postage. FPCAs and ballots returned in the pre-paid envelopes provided by the Department of Elections that are mailed within the United States, via an APO, FPO or in a diplomatic pouch do not require postage.

Things the Departments of Elections do to make sure that your ballots are received on time and counted:

• Mail ballots to military and overseas citizen voters first.
• Mail ballots the same day that the Federal Post Card Application is received once ballots are available and if there is no problem with the Federal Post Card Application.
• Attempt to contact applicants directly if there is a problem with their Federal Post Card Application.
• Pick up ballots at the Post Office the day before the election and on Election Day.
• Maintain contact with the U.S. Postal Service and the Federal Voting Assistance Program staff.
• Closely monitor the process.

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CRITICAL DATES AND DEADLINES

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Last Updated: Wednesday, 19-Dec-2007 15:33:54 EST