In this newsletter:

Friends,

In just over 50 days from now, Americans go to the polls. The upcoming November 5th midterm elections will go down in history as one of the most significant of the past century. 

Across the country, voters are expected to deliver a resounding rebuke of President Donald Trump and the corruption, abuse and inadequacy of his Administration. The vote marks the first opportunity to restore accountability in American politics. And it may also mark a turning point in America's social dynamics.

Today, there is widespread anger in America over the cost of living, the power of big corporations and the undue influence of billionaires. A century ago, it was much the same.

When Labor Day -- which we celebrate this month -- was officially recognized as a federal holiday in 1894, it capped almost 20 years of social upheaval between big industrialists and working folks. It was a period of unprecedented technological and industrial change that witnessed the emergence of big business, financial crises and the rise of the robber barons. 

History may not repeat itself, but it often rhymes: could these elections mark a new dawn for ordinary folks in America?

This is your opportunity to help shape that future. If you haven't done so already, make sure you register to vote and ask for your federal ballot at: votefromabroad.org. Tell every overseas American you know to go there, too. Because this year, your vote counts more than ever, and every member is our ambassador. 

And to the many volunteers who have helped spread the word through our phone banking and other efforts these past few months: my heartfelt thanks. The signs are positive but there's still work to do. Let's bring this over the line.

Thank you for staying engaged.

Alkman Granitsas
Chair, Democrats Abroad Greece

TODAY!! Don’t wait!!
Request Your 2026 Ballot by EMAIL
Fight back against Trump's attacks on our vote! We can receive our ballots by email if we register as overseas voters. Go to VoteFromAbroad.org to fill out the FPCA. Send the FPCA by email if your state allows (most do). Mark ‘send ballot by email’! When your ballot arrives, mark your votes and send it back asap. Some states allow electronic return. If your state doesn’t, consider paying for a courier. Trump has tried to hobble the US Postal Service to throw the election. Join us in thwarting him!

Sunday, SEP 6 - 15:00 EET
Beyond the Ballot: Affordability
Global Black Caucus presents this segment in their ongoing series of Issues that Affect Our Ballot, on Sunday, SEP 6. But we’re like ships that pass in the night. If you miss the web event, the recording will be up shortly.

Tuesday, SEP 8 - 19:30-22:00 EET
Happy Hour in Athens
Athens Happy Hour meets again at its fav retreat, En Aithria in Monastiraki. We start at 7:30, so those working downtown can stop by before heading home. Stop in and see what's shaping up for the months ahead. And don't hesitate to bring a friend. Details on the Events Page. 

Tuesday, SEP 8 - 19:00-21:00 EET
Happy Hour in Thessaloniki @ Cafe Bazaar
Thessaloniki is back in action at our beloved, Café Bazaar! Let’s grab a drink, catch up on the news, and see if anyone needs help getting their ballot request filed! More details on the Events Page.

Thursday, SEP 10 - (2 sessions) 10:00 OR 20:00 EET
Webinar: News Fed Credit Union Access for Dems Abroad
Democrats Abroad members and their families can now access U.S. banking products for free, with the State Department Federal Credit Union (SDFCU). SDFCU serves members both in the United States and abroad. Learn more at one of the two webinar sessions. RSVP here. And check out the DA Taxation Task Force’s information on the Taxpayer Assistance and Service (TAS) Act here.

Friday, SEP 11 - All Day
25 Years Since the WTC Attack - Commemoration
Ceremonies will be taking place at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in NYC and elsewhere. However, if there’s none near where you are, save a few moments for reflection on the day, the lives changed for ever, and the effects still felt today.

Tuesday, SEP 15 - 19:30 EET 
DAGR ExCom Meeting
The Dems Abroad Greece board, aka ExCom, meets every month. Members are welcome to sit in and come up to speed on the many things your board has to handle. Get a leg up on upcoming events in planning, and much more. Reply on this email for the WebEx link.

Friday, SEP 18 - All Day
Hands Off The Arts!
Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts supporters will demonstrate against Trump’s ham-fisted grab of anything he wants and destruction of anything he dislikes, e.g. trampling the Reach and tearing down Blue.

Saturday, SEP 19 - All Day
Ballot Drop!
All states are required to send out ballots 45 days before the election, and that’s today. IF you’ve asked that your ballot be sent by email, it will be in your inbox. If it’s not there, check junk and spam folders! If you didn’t ask for it by email, you still can. If you haven’t registered or requested your ballot, do it now. For info on all of this, check your state’s rules on the VoteFromAbroad website. 

Saturday, SEP 26 - 11:00-13:00 EET
Thessaloniki Saturday Coffee @ Xarchakos Cafe
Ballots for all elections should have been received the week before. So, whether you have questions, need help or just want to celebrate having already sent back your vote, the timing of this event couldn’t be better! 

And that’s not all …
See what other country committees and global caucuses are doing, on the DA website Events page.

Blue Dunes: Interview with the Author
More often than you might guess, one of our own DAGRs gets published, and it’s happening again. Karine Ancellin sets post-colonial dislocation and uprising in a novel that promises a good read as well as a history lesson! August article on the DA web page. Karine will be signing copies at our next Athens Happy Hour.

Angela’s New Substack
Angela Fobbs has a lot to say, and she’s finally giving herself the chance to say it. A member of DA Germany, in 2017, she was founding chair of the DA Global Black Caucus. From 2021 till state teams were shuttered, she was a co-lead of the Ohio Team and its expanded 4-state Ohio River Valley Team. She’s worked with DA advertising coms, Comms com and currently organizes global Events. You’ll recognize her as the steady hand hosting most of the DA webinars.

DemocracyDocket on Threats to Overseas Voting!
First they came for the kids born abroad. But make no mistake, we’re all next on the voter-suppression agenda. VFA and quotes by DA global Chair McDivett-Pugh are featured in this report on Republican efforts to whittle away at the electorate. Especially those parts of the electorate likely to vote Democrat.

North Carolina Governor Stein Vetoes Voter Repression Bill
Speeches may be the expected extolling of a legislative victory, but they’re all good. Of particular note are the presentations by faith leader, Rev. James Gallior and university student Shayla. All leading up to the actual veto, the speeches are bracing!

Home Stretch advice from EMEA GOTV deputy, Ada Shen (DA France)

Best thing to do to protect your overseas vote? The most powerful voter protection step you can take is to send in an FPCA Ballot Request every year, and ask to receive your ballot by Email or Online! 

• Worried about potential Voter Roll purges? Sending in an FPCA form makes you an "active voter" and clears up any flags on your voter registration that can happen if they think your address changed. It also re-registers you if you were actually purged. 

• Worried about USPS possibly interfering with your ballot delivery? Ask for your ballot to be sent to you by email, as we overseas voters have the right to do -- cut out USPS as the middleman on the first leg of the ballot’s journey.

• Make a plan to vote! Once you get your ballot, prepare to vote and return it right away. Ballots go out on Sept 19 (45 days before the election.) 

• Some states require that voted ballots be returned by postal mail - voters from those states should also cast and vote a Backup Ballot (FWAB) - read more here at www.Votefromabroad.org/backup_ballot. Need help or have questions? Get what you need at VotefromAbroad.org.

Local DAGR Voter Helpers! 
Most elections, we get a few calls for voting help. A member’s state wants the ballot as ‘origami.’ Their ‘English for instructions’ has gotten rusty. They don’t have a printer at home. Etc. Sometimes, we can help with a phone chat. Sometimes, a volunteer with our portable printer needs to visit a shut-in. Not all of these requests for help come from next-door to the GOTV chair. So, we’re building a list of ‘can help in a pinch’ from around Greece. In the provinces, on the islands. Just in case. Let us know if YOU can be on standby!

DAGR Phone Crew Wants YOU … It's September!
After Ballot Drop, DAGR will run its second phone campaign to make sure all of our members have requested their ballots. If you think you might be able to help or just want a little more info about what that entails, go to our GOTV Event page, and click the non-binding RSVP button. We’re back from the beach now and will be in touch soonest. Can’t wait to hear from you!

Not a Phone Person, But Love Social Media?
If phone banking isn’t your thing, but you’re on Facebook or Instagram fairly often, you can help. At the very least, FOLLOW us and LIKE our DAGR posts. (Links at the end of this newsletter.) If you have a little more to say, drop in a comment. Either way, it helps boost our ratings and gets our posts seen by more people.

In the meantime, if you or a friend haven’t requested your ballot, do it at VoteFromAbroad.org to guarantee your right to vote in the federal races. Oh, and did we forget to say? Ask for the ballot to be sent to you by EMAIL, to avoid Trump’s mail delays.

Greece Mid-Year GOTV Report
In mid-August, DAGR Chair Alkman put together a summary of our countrywide Get-Out-The-Vote activities in the first six months of 2026. The work goes on. In fact, the tempo is picking up. And mind you, this is just the nominal GOTV stuff. There are also monthly Happy Hours and the NO Kings rallies, as well as locally written articles on the news page. It all adds up!

YOU CAN VOTE from Greece!
Dems Abroad trains global volunteers to help us request a ballot. BUT if you need help getting your ballot ready and sent back to your home state from Greece, DAGR is the place to come. The GOTV team put together this article for the Greece News page. It’s short, sweet, and clear!

Keep Calm and Carry On
The local GOTV team also found this one, a voice of reason amidst all the fretting over Trump’s attempts to wreak havoc on the November election. Sound advice in two minutes.

Where the $$ Have Really Gone
Heather Cox Richardson wraps up an array of financial reporting, showing how the money goes from public coffers into Trump’s pocket. It’s grandiose and yet really quite simple. Billions! Wash, rinse, repeat. And come 2027? Impeach and indict!

Where’s My Tariff Refund?
More Perfect Union strikes again. This time, they’re looking at what Trump’s tariffs cost, how they were struck down in court, how Trump is ordered to refund the money, and who it’s actually going to. It’s not going to US families who paid for tariff-inflated products! Watch and write your senators to support Sen. Martin Heinrich’s Tariff Refunds for Working Families Act! And google Canada PM Carney! 

Excellent Messaging re Voting the Full Ballot
Any Georgia members here? This one is aimed at you. The main message, though, is good for all of us who can vote ‘down ballot’. But as the author of this Instragram short says, don’t think of it as somewhere down in the cellar. Think: Whole Ballot Energy!.

These Old DNC Hands Support Chair Ken Martin
If you read the pundits, it’s been pretty hard to ignore a steady stream of ‘Oooh, Dems in Debt and Disarray’ headlines and the blame directed at Chair Martin. But, Larry Cohen and James Zogby, with a cumulative 5 decades in the DNC between them, and a ‘small d’ in front of their names, set the matter straight in The Nation.

Articles of Impeachment for Justice Clarence Thomas
A very long read, but worth it if you’re into why, when, and how it can happen. Christopher Armitage on Substack makes the case for impeaching members of the Supreme Court: why the conduct is impeachable, why penalizing it now matters even without a conviction.

A Resistance History of the United States
This Tad Stoermer reel is longer than most. A lecture by a scholar of resistance, this one is entertaining, enlightening, and energizing. Stoermer sets up the different types of resistance to Nazi Germany and invites us to identify parallels in our current situation. Highly recommended!

Nothing Bonds a Crime Family Like the First Guy Who Flips
We admit it. We were torn. We thought “Canada Offers US the Honor of Becoming a Canadian Province” was pretty funny. But we couldn’t find a good clip to use. And then The Lincoln Project put Rick Wilson up. Wilson says impeachment is totally justified, but mathematically unlikely. It takes a two-thirds majority in the Senate to convict. So, as in RICO prosecutions, start with the wise guys. They don’t have executive privilege. It’s pretty tough talk, with some caveats for Dems who may want to ‘forget the past and just move on.’ But tell us you don’t giggle just a little, contemplating Jamie Raskin or Sheldon Whitehouse grilling them under oath.

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Dotting the i's, we leave you with thoughts on the first Labor Day and a few of our favorite old Labor songs. Woodie's machine still kills fascists.

• Which Side Are You On? - The Weavers
• The Banks Are Made of Marble - Seeger
• John Henry - Belafonte
• Union Maid - Guthrie
• Bread and Roses - British film

Up the Union!