Letter from the Editors

This month we are dedicating our newsletter to voting and taking part in DA’s efforts to get out the vote for ALL of us living abroad. We want to give you some of the newsletter team’s voting stories and why we think it is important to vote, both as Americans AND as Democrats living abroad. The election isn’t just 28 days away, it’s over in 28 days. We can’t let the right-wing silence our voices, deny our rights, and cheat their way to winning. Failure is not an option for all of the people and communities we care about. The election is happening right now as millions of people across the USA cast their ballot early. You cannot sit this one out. Democrats need your voice. Send in your ballot now. Forward this message to your

American friends who live abroad and talk to them about doing the same.

We hope that you enjoy this edition!

After engaging with delegation members organizing to insert Medicare for All in the platform, many Democrats Abroad delegates still chose to vote yes. LGBTQ+ Caucus Chair Martha McDevitt-Pugh, an automatic delegate to the convention, voted for the platform. She stated, "after passionate discussions in our delegation about the platform, I voted to approve it. The party platform declares who we are and what we stand for. We can hold all Democratic leaders accountable for what is in the platform, which highlights the most important issues as we see them now.

In the right environment we can achieve even more. That's why winning the presidency and a majority in congress and the Senate is critical”. She continued by saying that Republicans have been working diligently for years in an effort to strip away healthcare coverage, with no program to replace it. And while we’re in the midst of a global pandemic, the Trump administration asked the Supreme Court in June to overturn the Affordable Care Act. With the Republican Senate refusing to take up bills passed in the Democratic House of Representatives, Martha emphasizes that electing a Democratic Senate is necessary to forward the promise of healthcare for all: “I’m grateful for the organizing by our delegates to highlight that healthcare reform cannot wait. It inspires me to do all I can to turn red Senate seats blue in November.”