No election is ever the same, but this one may be remembered as the one in which more overseas voters than ever before cast ballots that were actually counted.
To meet the requirements of the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act passed last October, more and more states have pushed back their deadlines for receiving overseas ballots. Recently, the Department of Justice sued several states (including two with huge numbers of overseas voters - New York and Illinois) because ballots were sent out after the September 18 deadline (45 days before the election). Below is an excerpt from an article in the Clovis (NM) newpaper that gives a vivid and touching picture of what is going on all across the country (the underlining is ours...).
We remind everyone who may not yet have voted that there may still be time to do so. You can check ballot return deadlines at: https://www.overseasvotefoundation.org/svid-2010GE-ballot-deadlines
It is the clearest, most up-to-date table we know of...
Overseas voters granted extension
Saturday, Oct 23 2010, 6:21 pm
Sharna Johnson
Overseas voters from New Mexico have been granted an extension after ballots in six counties, including Curry County, were sent out past deadline for the Nov. 2 General Election.
To be counted, voting ballots sent to military and overseas voters - 844 total statewide, 102 of which missed the Sept. 18 deadline - must be returned to the county clerk where the voter is registered by 7 p.m. Nov. 6, a four day extension, according to the New Mexico Secretary of State's office.
County Clerk Connie Jo Lyman said Curry overseas voters will have ample opportunity to cast their votes.
All but two of the county's 14 overseas voters have already returned their ballots, she said, and the voters who still haven't were contacted and made aware of the extension.