A new helping hand for overseas voters
Applying for an absentee ballot from overseas just got a little easier, thanks to the Overseas Vote Foundation, which offers a tool for online registration that even tells you if your state or voting district has special procedures or referendum questions, and finds your 9-digit zip code for you.
As OVF puts it, “RAVA (Registration and Absentee Voter Application) is the first Internet-based system to provide a complete voter registration solution for both civilians and military voters.
The process is quick and easy, and should help to lower the number of incorrectly completed ballot applications – one reason for the disenfranchisement of many overseas voters.
See excerpts from their press release below:
Friday, February 3, 2006, Washington, D.C. - Overseas Vote Foundation has announced the launch of RAVA, its new Registration and Absentee Voter Application, accessible through: www.ovf-rava.org, overseasvotefoundation.org and www.overseasvote.org. RAVA is the first nonpartisan, secure, Internet-based voter registration solution for both military and overseas citizen voters.
"As of today”, said Susan Dzieduszycka-Suinat, OVF Executive Director, “eligible America civilian and military voters anywhere in the world can use RAVA to complete their voter registration in as little as five minutes. The system provides the voter with a mailing address and state-specific signing instructions."
An estimated seven million overseas citizens and uniformed services members, whose voting program falls under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), are eligible to use the system. UOCAVA voters include civilians and US government employees abroad, active duty military both within and outside of the US, and their accompanying dependents.
UOCAVA voters must comply with the Federal Voter Assistance Program (FVAP) voter registration system. The Federal Voter Assistance Guide (FVAG) comprises 462 pages to accompany the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) voter registration form. RAVA automates the 55 different sets of state/territory-specific requirements set forth in the FVAG, thereby shielding the voter from the complexity of the UOCAVA voter registration process.
RAVA guides the voter through the registration process asking question which pertain to the voter's state-specific regulations. Its integrated database includes every address for the 7,838 local election offices, and is continually being updated. OVF uses the Internet to provide the most up-to-date, accurate local election office addresses and regularly updated registration deadlines - both of which are constantly subject to change.