Request For Your Input - Students Voting While Overseas

August 6, 2008

In September, NAFSA will be participating in a summit that will be convened by The Pew Charitable Trusts focusing on a projected called Make Voting Work, an initiative aimed at ensuring all steps of the voting process – from registering to vote to casting and counting ballots – are convenient and secure for citizens. This is a multi-year project that aims to improve and strengthen our democracy by making overseas voting easier and more accessible to all citizens of the United States.

During the summit, they have asked me to sit on a panel to discuss experiences that U.S. students have had when voting while studying abroad. If you know of any success or horror stories that your students have faced in the pass while voting abroad, please send me a brief e-mail describing the situation. The name of the student can be kept confidential, I basically need information to share with this group in an effort to help them better understand the obstacles your students face and/or the processes that have worked for them.

Please send your stories to grassroots[at]nafsa.org on or before August 22, 2008. Thank you in advance for your help!

If you would like information to share with your students about casting absentee ballots while studying abroad this year, visit the Absentee Ballot Procedures page.

Sincerely,

Kari Lantos
Associate Director for Grassroots Advocacy