The FAWCO US Issues Team is joining our partner, the US Vote Foundation, to combat the most recent attack on the rights of overseas voters: a petition from the America First Legal Foundation asking the Election Assistance Commission to make rules requiring absentee voters to submit proof of US citizenship in order to register to vote. Such a requirement is unnecessary (we are already documented as citizens), unsafe (opens us up to identity theft) and unacceptable (we already have to jump over too many obstacles in our efforts to vote).
Here is the Foundation's statement. See FAWCO's statement below (when we have finished it). As many FAWCO members as possible should submit their own comments in the Federal Register before the deadline of October 20, 2025.
- the absentee voting system isn't broken (but safe and secure), so it doesn't need fixing
- the so-called fix in the petition (a) addresses a non-existent problem and (b) would increase burdens on overseas voters - and (c) further suppress participation - while (d) doing nothing to increase election integrity.
What to do
- Read the US Vote and FAWCO statements to understand the problem, and reuse any of their arguments in your own comment.
- Make your own comment against the petition.
- Share this news as widely as possible in your club and community, including with friends and family in the USA. With so much going on, this kind of thing is seldom covered in the news. Urge your American friends, family and club members to read the statements and make their own comments.
- Nervous about making a comment, especially if you've never done it before? Follow the US Vote Foundation's tips on what to say.
When writing your comment:
- There is no required length. You can keep it brief. Even one or two sentences is fine.
- Mention the state where you vote and how long you’ve been voting from abroad or in the military.
- Describe how adding new document requirements might affect your ability to register or vote.
- Act now: the submission deadline is Oct. 20, 2025.
Your opinion and your lived reality as an overseas or military voter matter. Please take a moment to speak up—your experience can help protect secure and accessible voting for all Americans abroad and in uniform.
Statement from the FAWCO US Issues Team
The US Issues Team is still hammering out the exact wording, but you don't need to wait for a final text before starting to spread the word and to put your own comment together. This article will be amended to give the FAWCO statement in full when it is final. Our central arguments are the following.
- Overseas voters have the same obligations as other US citizens but face more obstacles to exercising our right to vote than our compatriots: (a) the need to re-register in every election year; (b) the need to predict our future movements (whether we plan to return to the US); (c) limits and attacks on the voting rights of citizens without adult residence in the US for a minimum period; and (d) for many, unstable or no postal system, which hinders returning registration forms and ballots, as well as the new problems within the US postal system.
- As citizens living overseas, we have lots of documents to prove our identities and citizenship. But there is no system to ensure the safe, reliable and secure transfer and verification of copies of such documents with our registration forms. This exposes us to risks of breach of privacy and identity theft. So granting the petition would increase our burdens and open us to new risks while hampering our right to vote - with no benefit to election integrity.
- If the Election Assistance Commission is interested in improving the current system for overseas voting, it should reduce the excessive barriers we already face - not add to them, with no benefit to election integrity.