The key line: "The men and women of our armed forces put themselves in harms way every day to protect our most fundamental rights, and we are committed to making sure their right to vote is protected, regardless of where they are serving around the world."
October 27, 2008Secretary Nancy Rodrigues
Virginia State Board of Elections
200 North 9th Street, Suite 101
Richmond, Virginia 23219Dear Secretary Rodrigues:
As you may be aware, the McCain-Palin Virginia campaign held a press conference in Arlington, Virginia recently to discuss a potential issue with the processing of Federal Write-in Absentee Ballots ("FWABs").
Most FWABs are submitted by men and women serving our country in the armed forces or abroad. Such brave men and women are casting FWABs in record numbers in this historic election.
...The potential issue flagged by the McCain-Palin campaign concerns the requirement that a third-party witness provide their address in Box 7 of the FWAB Declaration/Affirmation (the "FWAB Affirmation"). Many of the FWAB Affirmations have failed to include an address next to the signature of the witness.Virginia law requires the FWAB envelope "be witnessed, and the witness shall provide his signature, printed name and address in the witness signature box" (Va. Code -º 24.2-702.1). To fulfill such requirement, the Virginia State Board of Elections website directs potential voters to the form FWAB Affirmation located at http://www.fvap.gov/. Such form provides a place for the witness to sign the FWAB Affirmation but fails to include a place for the witness to write out his or her address. Furthermore, the form clearly characterizes the address requirement as an "if required" field. Given the lack of space provided and the "if required" language, it is understandable that a witness might fail to write in his or her address next to their signature affirming their identity, and the Obama-Biden campaign firmly believes that the FWAB Affirmation's witness address requirement is not sufficiently material to render an otherwise valid ballot void.
We believe it would be gravely unfair to reject FWABs that are otherwise valid for a missing witness address. The men and women of our armed forces put themselves in harms way every day to protect our most fundamental rights, and we are committed to making sure their right to vote is protected, regardless of where they are serving around the world. Virginia is proud to be home to so many members of our military, and Barack Obama is proud of the support he has found among their ranks. The Obama-Biden campaign has worked tirelessly to bring as many people as possible into the electoral process, and we will continue to work until Election Day to make sure that every eligible voter can have their vote counted.
We strongly encourage the General Registrars of Virginia to process and accept these FWABs. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at 877-850-2008 or 804-644-1966.
Mitch Stewart
Virginia State Director
Obama for AmericaLevar Stoney
Executive Director
Democratic Party of Virginia
I even helped get other U.S. service men and women to vote absentee in my military unit's drive for greater participation, and we were all encouraged to use the base APO to send our ballots in; none of us new that many states discard ballots with no postmark.
It's very frustrating, and I was not even in a combat zone. The men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan have earned their right to vote far more than most of us; we need to do everything we can to count their votes and let their voices be heard.
The ruling does just what the whole "protect the vote" strategy has been and is doing in that it Protects Everyone's right to vote as sacred !!! no matter which party