Right to vote in the military

[Waveoff]

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/22

Unless I’m reading this wrong, the new federal voting policy requires in person voter registration with no exceptions for military members.

In fact it seems like a requested amendment for military was voted down just yesterday.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Military/s/3PwWnTX5Nf

Google said that it’s the The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) of 1986 that requires states to accommodate for deployed members, TAD to different states, stationed away from the home of record, etc.

I dont know if the SAVE acts in conjunction with the UOCAVA, or replaces it. But if it replaces it then I’m very worried about the right to vote. Is anyone smarter than me on this? You’d think that no red blooded American would act against the interest of deployed servicemembers but here we seem to be.

 

[Mos]

Haven't been following this much till now. The US Vote Foundation seems to view this as a threat to voter rights as evidenced by their letter to Congress template (https://www.usvotefoundation.org/le...-military-voters-speak-out-save-act-hr22-s128).

This section from the bill suggests to me that it doesn't replace UOCAVA, but I'm a layman when it comes to law.

SEC. 7. Rule of construction regarding effect on State exemptions from other Federal laws.

Nothing in this Act or in any amendment made by this Act may be construed to affect the exemption of a State from any requirement of any Federal law other than the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.).

If it's as bad as USVF and your Reddit post indicate, I would expect FVAP to figure out guidance for ppl overseas, but given how haphazardly changes are implemented this days, wouldn't be surprised if someone gets disenfranchised during the process. Sounds like a lawsuit somewhere on the horizon.

 

[CommodoreMid]

I registered to vote in FL in 2008 and I have no idea what documents I used to prove eligibility at the time. I would hope that since I now have a REAL ID compliant license from FL, which I had to show both my birth certificate and my passport to get, that my previous voter registration would be considered good, but I legitimately have no idea now. No longer in FL, so really hope I don’t have to jump through hoops.

 

[Waveoff]

Thanks AI…

Since the UOCAVA is separate from the NVRA, hopefully it solves itself but I have a feeling that won’t come up until it becomes a crisis as per usual.

 

[ea6bflyr]

View attachment 42383

Thanks AI…

Since the UOCAVA is separate from the NVRA, hopefully it solves itself but I have a feeling that won’t come up until it becomes a crisis as per usual.

Now do this for the second amendment.

 

[Spekkio]

I dont know if the SAVE acts in conjunction with the UOCAVA, or replaces it. But if it replaces it then I’m very worried about the right to vote. Is anyone smarter than me on this? You’d think that no red blooded American would act against the interest of deployed servicemembers but here we seem to be.

My right to vote was removed by Real ID. I couldn't get back to my state of residency to convert my license, and when I got a license from a different state I lost the right to vote there. I will not officially change my state of residency because it's not worth an additional $8,000 per year in taxes to vote... and besides, the districts are entrenched in a political party. I actually had a professor who did the mathematical game theory analysis and I have less than a 1 in 1 trillion chance of impacting an election with my vote.

If you're curious, you can have a much better chance of having an impact if you are a Rhode Island resident for federal elections from a raw voting power numbers standpoint. If we take into account the state's voting habits and that Rhode Island is heavily "blue", then you have to vote in a 'purple' state. Then your voting power goes from 1 in more than a trillion to 1 in the millions.

A lesson in second / third order effects.

 

[sevenhelmet]

Now do this for the second amendment.

Agreed, but bear in mind this is AI coded and trained by nerdy silicon valley males.

 

[sevenhelmet]

I actually had a professor who did the mathematical game theory analysis and I have less than a 1 in 1 trillion chance of impacting an election with my vote.

This is EXACTLY why political parties are the enemy of democracy. Not what the founders had in mind. Not sure how we fix it, but nationalization of the two major parties was a big step in the wrong direction.

 

[Spekkio]

This is EXACTLY why political parties are the enemy of democracy. Not what the founders had in mind. Not sure how we fix it, but nationalization of the two major parties was a big step in the wrong direction.

I don't view it that way.

Municipal elections are the most impactful to people's day-to-day lives, even though they won't go down in the history books. Since I don't actually live in my town / county / state of residency, my vote in these matters is wasted (unless I move back... which I won't). And despite my state / county's strong Democrat majority in national elections, we do frequently elect Republicans to county executive and governor.

On a national scale, the federal government is supposed to represent the states. I am a big hater of direct election of Senators because that makes the chamber work for the wrong people, and if I were to craft the Constitution today I would have the governors collectively appoint the President.

 

[BigRed389]

I don't view it that way.

Municipal elections are the most impactful to people's day-to-day lives, even though they won't go down in the history books. Since I don't actually live in my town / county / state of residency, my vote in these matters is wasted (unless I move back... which I won't). And despite my state / county's strong Democrat majority in national elections, we do frequently elect Republicans to county executive and governor.

On a national scale, the federal government is supposed to represent the states. I am a big hater of direct election of Senators because that makes the chamber work for the wrong people, and if I were to craft the Constitution today I would have the governors collectively appoint the President.

So, you’re saying the other countries with parliamentary systems are on to something.

Yes - they pick via the legislative, you’re talking about governors, but still…

 

[AllAmerican75]

On a national scale, the federal government is supposed to represent the states. I am a big hater of direct election of Senators because that makes the chamber work for the wrong people, and if I were to craft the Constitution today I would have the governors collectively appoint the President.

Yes, the Founding Fathers originally had senators elected by state legislatures or appointed by state governors. It was like that until the 17th Amendment was passed. We really need to repeal the 17th Amendment as soon as possible.

 

[Spekkio]

So, you’re saying the other countries with parliamentary systems are on to something.

Yes - they pick via the legislative, you’re talking about governors, but still…

I'm saying that the federal government is supposed to primarily represent the will of the states with input from the people (the House). That's why Senators were originally appointed by state legistlatures and we have the winner-take-all electoral college (in most states).

Parliamentary governments don't have a system where states (provinces) have nearly as much power as our states do. Some people in NY get outraged that Texas bans abortion... if you live in NY, this doesn't affect you and let Texas be Texas.

 

[exNavyOffRec]

I registered to vote in FL in 2008 and I have no idea what documents I used to prove eligibility at the time. I would hope that since I now have a REAL ID compliant license from FL, which I had to show both my birth certificate and my passport to get, that my previous voter registration would be considered good, but I legitimately have no idea now. No longer in FL, so really hope I don’t have to jump through hoops.

My voter registration was a long time ago, I remember going down to vote in person in WA, I would show my voter card that let the person know I was supposed to vote at that location, I think I had to show my ID as well (not 100% sure).

Fast forward from that time to several years ago when my ballots stopped arriving, when I called to ask after the I didn't get the general election I was notified a change of address was put in and my ballot was sent to XXXX and I had in fact voted in the primary and general election. When I said I hadn't moved, they confirmed it, I then asked how this happened and they couldn't answer me except they received a change of address from "me".

 

[Waveoff]

I check my state’s online voter registration site months before my major elections, since I don’t live there after PCSing. The shitty thing is that you also don’t get a notification if you are purged from the voter rolls for any reason.

 

[Brett327]

FWIW, WA State votes 100% by mail, and maintaining my registration has been very easy. I get an email when my ballot is ready, and I download it to fill out at home, then send it in. The state’s voting website tells you the status of your ballot. Couldn’t be more pleased with this system.