U.S. expatriates get out the voteBy Ellen Hale
As moviegoers filter out of the Screen on the Hill theater in this lush residential area of London, Judy Miara launches her pitch: "Are there any Americans here? Are you registered to vote?"
Of the dozens who have just seen Michael Moore's record-setting anti-war film, Fahrenheit 9/11, three approach. Miara explains the absentee-voting process, helps them fill out the registration form and even provides the stamp.
"We got an Ohio and a Texas," says Miara, a banker who has lived in London for nine years. "That's really good."
If passions over the U.S. presidential race are at boiling point back home, they may be even higher abroad, where many Americans say they experience firsthand the ramifications of President Bush's foreign policies. Whether they approve of those policies or not, by all accounts, U.S. citizens overseas are registering in greater numbers than ever before, hoping their vote can make a difference in an election both sides say may be the most crucial in modern American history.
More than three months before the elections, Democrats Abroad, the group for which Miara works, claims it has helped register 8,000 American voters in Britain. In the 2000 contest between Bush and Al Gore and Bush, the group registered fewer than 7,000 U.S. citizens. Worldwide, it is setting similar records, according to Frances Deak, 68, who has lived in Britain for 23 years and is in charge of the organization's global efforts. Republicans also expect to see an increase in interest among expatriate voters.
"They're lucky we're not a state," Deak says of Americans living outside the USA. If they were, expatriate Americans could make up the 13th-largest. While the number of U.S. citizens living abroad is not officially tallied, estimates range from 3 million to 7 million. It is believed that about 250,000 live in Britain. That makes the United Kingdom third to Mexico and Canada as the foreign country most populated by Americans.
'Expats feel estranged'
Two million to 3 million expatriates are eligible voters, says Steven Hill, senior analyst for the non-partisan Center for Voting and Democracy in San Francisco. The race is expected to be so tight in some states, such as Ohio, that expats could help determine the victor.
Traditionally, Americans abroad have not voted in large numbers. Rumors that their ballots are not counted or get lost keep some away. Cumbersome registration and voting procedures deter others. Under law, Americans abroad must register with the state in which they most recently resided. Guidelines vary with each state.
It is estimated that about 30% of U.S. citizens overseas vote. (Overall turnout in the 2000 presidential election was more than 50%.) About 70% of military personnel do, says Claire Taylor, an American living in the Netherlands. Taylor recently set up a non-partisan online site, www.tellanamericantovote.com, to get non-Americans to tell their U.S. friends to vote.
Of the dozens who have just seen Michael Moore's record-setting anti-war film, Fahrenheit 9/11, three approach. Miara explains the absentee-voting process, helps them fill out the registration form and even provides the stamp.
"We got an Ohio and a Texas," says Miara, a banker who has lived in London for nine years. "That's really good."
If passions over the U.S. presidential race are at boiling point back home, they may be even higher abroad, where many Americans say they experience firsthand the ramifications of President Bush's foreign policies. Whether they approve of those policies or not, by all accounts, U.S. citizens overseas are registering in greater numbers than ever before, hoping their vote can make a difference in an election both sides say may be the most crucial in modern American history.
More than three months before the elections, Democrats Abroad, the group for which Miara works, claims it has helped register 8,000 American voters in Britain. In the 2000 contest between Bush and Al Gore and Bush, the group registered fewer than 7,000 U.S. citizens. Worldwide, it is setting similar records, according to Frances Deak, 68, who has lived in Britain for 23 years and is in charge of the organization's global efforts. Republicans also expect to see an increase in interest among expatriate voters.
"They're lucky we're not a state," Deak says of Americans living outside the USA. If they were, expatriate Americans could make up the 13th-largest. While the number of U.S. citizens living abroad is not officially tallied, estimates range from 3 million to 7 million. It is believed that about 250,000 live in Britain. That makes the United Kingdom third to Mexico and Canada as the foreign country most populated by Americans.
'Expats feel estranged'
Two million to 3 million expatriates are eligible voters, says Steven Hill, senior analyst for the non-partisan Center for Voting and Democracy in San Francisco. The race is expected to be so tight in some states, such as Ohio, that expats could help determine the victor.
Traditionally, Americans abroad have not voted in large numbers. Rumors that their ballots are not counted or get lost keep some away. Cumbersome registration and voting procedures deter others. Under law, Americans abroad must register with the state in which they most recently resided. Guidelines vary with each state.
It is estimated that about 30% of U.S. citizens overseas vote. (Overall turnout in the 2000 presidential election was more than 50%.) About 70% of military personnel do, says Claire Taylor, an American living in the Netherlands. Taylor recently set up a non-partisan online site, www.tellanamericantovote.com, to get non-Americans to tell their U.S. friends to vote.
Election Day '09 was a roller-coaster for election reformers. Instant runoff voting had a great night in Minnesota, where St. Paul voters chose to implement IRV for its city elections, and Minneapolis voters used IRV for the first time—with local media touting it as a big success. As the Star-Tribune noted in endorsing IRV for St. Paul, Tuesday’s elections give the Twin Cities a chance to show the whole state of Minnesota the benefits of adopting IRV. There were disappointments in Lowell and Pierce County too, but high-profile multi-candidate races in New Jersey and New York keep policymakers focused on ways to reform elections; the Baltimore Sun and Miami Herald were among many newspapers publishing commentary from FairVote board member and former presidential candidate John Anderson on how IRV can mitigate the problems of plurality elections.