From left to right: Chris Reilly (Chair), Annie Graul (Secretary), Hunter Roberts (Vice Chair), Jim Mercereau  (Chair, DA Spain), Catherine Dexter (Membership), Steven Tolliver (former Chair), Harry Edelman (Youth Engagement), Scott Stroud (Chair, DA Toulous)

Last weekend, the DA Barcelona excom team and two special collaborators met for an intense weekend of teambuilding, learning and preparation for the 2020 elections. As we all can probably agree, next year’s election will be an incredibly important one, with so much hanging in the balance: the environment, minority rights, international trade, immigration, diplomacy and international alliances, more justices being named to the courts, the future of Roe v. Wade – these are just a few that come to mind. As overseas Americans, we know that the actions taken over the past three years by the current president have had far-reaching implications, not just for those living in the States, but for individuals and countries around the world. Fortunately, we voters have the opportunity to steer the US back to the proper course just 12 months from now. A lot has to happen for that to work, however, and we are busy laying the groundwork so that everything goes as smoothly as possible.

What can you, as overseas Americans and DA members, do now and in the future to help in this effort?

• If you haven’t already, join Democrats Abroad today!
• After you’ve become a member of DA, you can sign the Democratic candidate petitions to ensure that your favorite candidate(s) will appear on the ballot for the Global Presidential Primary (GPP) next year. Each campaign needs at least 300 valid Democrats Abroad members to sign their petition by January 6, 2020 to be included on the Democrats Abroad GPP ballot.
• In January 2020, register to vote. Even if you think that you might already be registered, go to votefromabroad.org, fill out the online form and return it to your local election officials. As an overseas voter, you need to send in the form to request your ballot for every calendar year in which you wish to vote.
• In March, coinciding with Super Tuesday, all members of Democrats Abroad can vote in the Global Presidential Primary. Be sure to watch for emails and follow our social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook and Instagram) for information about this exciting and crucial event. We will be putting out calls for volunteers to help signing in voters, supervising the election space and counting votes afterward, among other important tasks. We can’t make this work without our members, so please be ready to stand up. If you want to get started now, send an email to [email protected]
• Be informed about your rights and responsibilities as a voter, and be sure to share important, fact-checked information with your friends and family
• Reach out to other Americans who might not be actively involved. Ask them if they have registered and voted in the past, and if they plan to do so this year. Help us to identify expats who have “gone underground” and as such, are harder to reach.
• Phone bank
• Donate! Running an electoral campaign is an expensive endeavor, and the GOP is already out-fundraising and outspending us by a significant amount. Consider donating to Democrats Abroad, to local Democratic party committees in swing states like Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, or to larger organizations such as ActBlue. You can also donate to Fair Fight 2020, an organization formed by former Georgia Democratic candidate for governor, Stacey Abrams, to promote fair elections in Georgia and around the country, encourage voter participation in elections, and educate voters about elections and their voting rights.
• Please let us know if you have any further ideas and suggestions to share with fellow Dems!