Here's what's happening in DA Austria in January —
Message from the Chair
Upcoming Events:
- Solidarity Sundays: Constitution & Cocktails: An Interactive Reading
- Young Democrats: Trivia Night
- Salzburg Monthly Meet-up
- Solidarity Sundays: Midterm Planning and Pressure Politics
- Kunsthistorisches Museum Tour
- Annual General Meeting
Event Highlights:
- Solidarity Sundays: Constitution & Cocktails: An Interactive Reading
- Young Democrats: Trivia Night
Inside Democrats Abroad:
- Year in Review: Elections 2025
- Same Procedure As Every Year — International Ballot Request Launch
- Tax Webinar
Inside DA Austria:
- Fuel 2026 Wins
- Take This Short, 4-minute Survey
- Join the Phonebanking Team!
Issues and Actions:
- Statement on Senator Moreno’s Unconstitutional Citizenship Proposal
Review:
- Young Democrats December Board Game Night
Our next Executive Committee meeting will be on Thursday, January 15, at 7:00 p.m. Members are welcome to join us at the meetings. Please contact Brett Carnito at [email protected] for the location.
DAA is committed to keeping you up to date while respecting your inbox. Our monthly newsletter brings together all the important information you need in one place, so you can stay informed without the extra emails. We appreciate you reading and staying connected!
Message from the Chair:
This January 2 I fulfilled an important New Year’s resolution: I navigated to votefromabroad.org, clicked “Request your ballot,” entered my information, digitally signed my Federal Postcard Application (FPCA) and sent it off to my local County Clerk. It was all done within 5 minutes.
With that five-minute investment I have:
- renewed my voter registration
- requested my ballots for all elections in 2026
- ensured that my ballot is protected under federal law. Ballots requested with an FPCA are protected under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), which is especially important when some states are actively engaged in voter suppression
- saved our phonebankers the need to contact me, leaving them with more freedom to reach out to people who need more support
- saved DA money. Phonebanking and mailings come at a cost, covered by your donations, and without the need to contact me those donations will now go a little bit further
Please join me in this resolution. Go to votefromabroad.org and request your ballot today. It’s quick, easy, and matters.
— Brett Carnito, DA Austria Chair
Upcoming Events:
Solidarity Sundays Vienna
Constitution & Cocktails: An Interactive Reading
Thursday, January 8, 2026
6:30-8:00 PM
RSVP for location
Young Democrats: Young Americans Trivia Night
Sunday, January 11, 2026
7:30-9:30 PM
Charlie P’s Pub, Währinger Straße 3, 1090 Vienna
RSVP
Salzburg Monthly Meet-up
Friday, January 16, 2026
5:30–7:30 p.m.
Krimpelstätter Restaurant, Müllner Hauptstraße 31, Salzburg 5020
RSVP
Solidarity Sundays Vienna
Meet-up: Midterm Planning and Pressure Politics
Sunday, January 18, 2026
4:00-6:00 PM
RSVP for location
Save the Date! KHM Michaelina Wautier Tour
Thursday, February 12, 2026
6:30-8:00 PM
RSVP
Tickets available for donation on Jan 15, 2026
Save the Date! Democrats Abroad Austria Annual General Meeting
Sunday, March 15, 2026
14:00-17:00 PM
RSVP
Event Highlights:
Constitution & Cocktails: An Interactive Reading
Thursday, January 8, 2026
Join us for an intimate evening exploring the U.S. Constitution—not as a sacred text, but as a living document that’s been contested, interpreted, and reinterpreted to meet each generation’s political challenges. We’ll gather at a private home for wine and snacks, then dive into selected passages that matter most right now. Attendees will take turns reading sections aloud, with discussion woven throughout.
This isn’t a lecture—it’s a conversation. We’ll dig into how the Constitution actually functions in our system, why certain amendments are flashpoints today, and how what’s written on the page connects to concrete actions we can take. Space is limited to 15 people to keep discussion participatory. RSVP required.
Young Democrats: Young Americans Trivia Night
Sunday, January 11, 2026
Join your fellow young Americans living in Vienna for our first trivia night! Whether you are new to the city, studying here, or a long-time resident, everyone is welcome to join us for a night of trivia, good company, and conversation. Come and be a part of our vibrant community and make new friends in Vienna! RSVP
Inside Democrats Abroad:
Year in Review: Elections 2025
In election after election this year, Democrats delivered victories. We won in Virginia, New Jersey, and critical supreme court races in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, along with special election wins across the country. In fact, there was a resurgence of blue victories in districts that haven’t voted for Democrats in decades – winning or overperforming in 226 out of 254 key elections, a rate of nearly 90%.
Our calls, texts, emails, and voter support helped make sure votes from abroad were sent back and counted. The wind is in our sails and we’ll be doing the same local, personal, innovative outreach in 2026.
– DA Austria ExCom
“The vote is precious. It is almost sacred.
It is the most powerful non-violent tool we have in a democracy.”
—John Lewis
Same Procedure As Every Year
January 15 is International Voter Registration Day
The data shows that ballots from overseas citizens registered to vote using the Federal Postcard Application (FPCA) form have a higher success rate of being counted.
That’s why it’s important that US citizens living overseas register to vote in every calendar year as an overseas voter and NOT as an in-state absentee voter. Vote from Abroad incorporates the federal voter registration form (FPCA) with a streamlined experience to assist you in navigating the necessary information to quickly and successfully complete the federal form.
Also, voting experts can personally help you with any general questions or specific inquiries about your state’s rules. And Democrats Abroad’s Voter Protection Team is ready to legally step in when voting rights are abused.
Our votes make the Margin of Victory. Be counted. Submit your FPCA at votefromabroad.org today.
Why submit a Federal Postcard Application (FPCA) to request your 2026 ballots?
What it means for you —
By submitting the FPCA form in January, you ensure:
- Your voter registration remains current.
- Your Local Election Official will send your ballots for every election you are eligible to vote in during the calendar year.
- Your ballots can be sent by email and in most states, returned electronically.
- Your ballot–and your vote–is protected under federal law (UOCAVA) and will be counted and included in the biannual Federal Voter Assistance Program (FVAP) report.
- If your ballot doesn’t arrive in time, you’re eligible to use an emergency write-in ballot.
What it means for DA Austria —
By submitting the FPCA form in January, you help us save valuable time and resources. When you register and request your ballots now, we can take you off our call and mailing lists — saving us thousands of dollars per year.
- In 2024, DA Austria spent approximately $2.60 per member to specifically remind our members to request their ballots through Vote from Abroad.
- In the spring of 2024 we called all of our members ($1500) and in the late summer/fall we sent mailers to members who vote in swing states and other critical elections ($3200).
- About half of our membership, 953, used Vote from Abroad by election day. At $4.90 per request, this is much lower than the cost of voter registration drives in the States. But you could save us that cost by going to VFA and requesting your ballot now.
We want to redirect those funds to reach the 10,000 US citizens in Austria who aren’t members of Democrats Abroad—many of whom don’t know they can vote or that their vote matters.
It takes less than 5 minutes. Do it today at VoteFromAbroad.org
Webinar: How to Survive Tax Day for Americans Abroad
Feeling lost or overwhelmed about filing your IRS tax return this year? We want to help! Please join us for a consumer focused Zoom webinar on How to Survive Tax Day for Americans Abroad on Wednesday, January 14, 2026.
What: How to Survive Tax Day for Americans Abroad
When: Wednesday, January 14, 2026 from 6:00-7:30 p.m. GMT / 7:00-8:30 p.m. CET (view your time zone)
Tickets: $12.50 General Admission or $7.50 Retired/Student/Unemployed/Veteran. All proceeds go to Democrats Abroad to help rally the overseas vote in 2026. Feel free to get a $20.26 boost ticket to bump up your donation! Click here for tickets.
If you can’t make it for this date/time, don’t worry! A recording will be made available to all ticket-holders after the event.
—DA Global Taxation Taskforce
Inside Democrats Abroad Austria:
Help Build the Margin of Victory in 2026
With the November election behind us, our focus is firmly on 2026! We’ve got lots to do, and we want to make sure you know not only about what we are up to but about ways you can help too.
Will you support DA Austria for our early 2026 voter outreach?
Donate today! $25 can fund 25 voter-assistance calls, $100 funds a month of local online outreach.
Early support makes a huge difference. In January, we will launch our voter-registration and ballot-request push. With traditional digital ads now more restricted and more expensive, we’re building a budget of $1 per person — $12,000 — for local advertisement to reach the 12,000 Americans living in Austria. We made a great start with our 2025 Thanksgiving Raffle — raising almost $1,500!
Thank you for standing with us and for helping us be the margin of victory this year!
— Jen Rakow-Stepper, DA Austria Treasurer
Reader Survey
Take This Short 4-minute Survey
We need to hear from you to improve the quality and relevance of future newsletters and outreach efforts.
There are 20 short questions, which should take less than four minutes to complete.
Thank you for your participation!
— Jen
Join the Phonebanking Team!
A new year is upon us, which means it's time to contact all our members to help them request and vote their ballots in the midterm elections - and other important elections coming up in their states this year!
Phonebanking is THE most direct way to help - each person reached is a ballot requested and a vote recorded - so get trained to make calls through CallHub, a very easy platform used by Democrats Abroad - and start making your first calls! I can personally say it is an extremely gratifying experience to reach like-minded Americans around Austria and help them to vote.
We are mobilizing in January to start calling our members. Get in touch with our phonebanking coordinator Caitlin to learn more by dropping a quick note to [email protected]
— Caitlin Ahern, Phonebanking Coordinator
Issues and Actions:
VMF Member Opinion: Why Removing the Margraten Memorial to Black Soldiers is Wrong
Frankfurt, Germany—The following opinion piece is authored by Carl Landon Schetter Taylor, a U.S. Army veteran residing in Germany, a Pennsylvania UOCAVA voter, and a member of the Democrats Abroad Global Veterans and Military Families (VMF) Caucus. The piece is a response to the Trump Administration’s disturbing pattern of removing significant and historically accurate information about the U.S. military’s uniformed heroes of minority descent, this time centering on the recent removal of educational panels at the Netherlands American Cemetery detailing African Americans’ involvement in World War II.
Statement on Senator Moreno’s Unconstitutional Citizenship Proposal
Senator Bernie Moreno (R-OH) released a proposal in early December that, if passed, would strip U.S. citizenship from Americans who hold a second passport. The bill, S.3283 titled Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025, has been referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Martha McDevitt-Pugh, Chair of Democrats Abroad, strongly condemns Moreno's bill: “Dual citizenship is not a threat - it’s an asset that reflects the reality of an interconnected world where Americans live, work, serve, and advocate for U.S. interests on a global scale. Questioning loyalty because a citizen possesses another passport is not just wrong, it’s an attack on the millions of Americans whose lives span borders and who contribute every day to the strength of the United States.
The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens, and the Supreme Court has repeatedly affirmed that this citizenship cannot be taken away by the government as a punishment or policy choice. In Afroyim v. Rusk and Vance v Terrazas, the Court made clear that the only way someone can lose U.S. citizenship is if they voluntarily choose to relinquish it. Congress cannot overrule the Constitution by statute, and this bill would collapse immediately under judicial review.
Beyond being unconstitutional, the bill relies on a false and dangerous narrative about dual citizens. Millions of Americans hold dual nationality, many from birth, many through marriage, parentage, or living abroad for work or service. These Americans include service members, diplomats, aid workers, business leaders, and families who represent the United States around the world. They do not have “divided loyalty”; they have deep global ties that strengthen America’s influence, economy, and security.
This bill is unconstitutional on its face, misguided in its assumptions, and harmful to the global American community. Congress must reject it outright.”
More Information
Status of bill
S.3283 has been read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Follow here for status updates.
— DA News
Review:
Young Democrats December Board Game Night
At the Young Democrats December board game night, we had an exciting group where fun conversations were had amidst a game of Codenames Pictures. Thanks to everyone who came out for our monthly Young DA board game nights in 2025!
—The Young Dems Team
Thank you for reading our January Newsletter! DA Austria wishes you a happy and healthy 2026!