Join our voter registration team—protect votes from abroad!

Democrats Abroad sets up Voter Registration events all over the world to help overseas voters makes sure they will get their ballots and VOTE!

Overseas voters need to send in their Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) form to request their ballot every calendar year in which they wish to vote. Our website, www.votefromabroad.org, makes it easy for overseas voters to fill in and submit their form.

To volunteer at a Democrats Abroad Voter Registration event near you, please contact your local chapter of Democrats Abroad. Go to: www.democratsabroad.org and click on "Countries" for contact information--or email us at: gotv@democratsabroad.org

These training materials will provide the background you'll need to volunteer at a voter registration event and help your friends, family, and other overseas voters register to vote and request their ballots. (For your convenience, the training materials are offered either in a training deck OR video format):

• Training Deck: Voter Registration: New Volunteers Training (Upd Mar 2020) [google Slides]
  
  
• Video: Voter Registration: New Volunteers Training (Nov 2019) [45 mins]
  Just hit "PLAY" to get the video started.
  Please IGNORE the card saying "There is no content to view at the moment, either because no content is shared, or because an unsupported media object is being shared."

Questions about voter registration or volunteering? Send an email to the Voter Help Desk at: gotv@democratsabroad.org

for Vacancies in the U.S. House

Maryland's 7th | Wisconsin's 7th | California's 25th | see Ballotpedia.org for US House Special Elections 2020 ➚

Make a NEW ballot request for 2020 — send your form as early as JAN 2, 2020.

1. Go to www.votefromabroad.org to complete* the Ballot Request form (FPCA).
   We recommend that you choose to receive your ballot by EMAIL or ONLINE to get it fastest.
2. Follow the instructions to attach your signature online, or print out the completed form to sign it.
3. Send the signed FPCA to your election official.
   To request an absentee ballot, registered voters can EMAIL, FAX or MAIL the FPCA.
   To register to vote:
     •  Maryland and Wisconsin voters must MAIL the form.
     •  California voters can MAIL or FAX the form or register online.

• After you send in your form, be sure to email or call your Local Election Official to verify they received it and will be sending a ballot to you. You can find contact information for your election official using the State Voting Guide on VoteFromAbroad.org or on the instructions printed with your completed form.
• If you use the FPCA to request a ballot, only one form submission is needed to cover all 2020 elections, including the November 3 general election.
• You can expect to receive your ballot 45 days before the election. Send your FPCA as early as January 2, 2020 to get all your ballots as soon as they are available. Mark your calendar: the November ballot will be sent to you by September 19.

If you have any questions while filling out the form on VoteFromAbroad.org, click the orange chat box button on the lower right corner of the screen to send a question to the Voter Help Desk or email gotv@democratsabroad.org.

Good news! Following an agreement by the member states at the Extraordinary Congress on 25 September 2019, the Trump Administration will allow the US to continue to participate in the Universal Postal Union (UPU). Please click on this link to see the Democrats Abroad Statement on the US remaining in UPU

While this is excellent news for the current elections, there is reason to be wary! The agreement allows the US (and other countries) to set their own postal rates starting 1 July 2020. If the US enacts higher rates, it could have a significant impact on mailing to and from the US.

To make sure you can successfully cast your ballot, please:

1. When you fill out your ballot request form on votefromabroad.org, be sure to indicate you choose to receive your ballot by "Email or online". (We highly recommend you do not choose "Mail"--don't risk your ballot being lost or delayed in the mail!)
   
   
2. Once you received your ballot, we recommend returning your ballot by email or fax if your state allows it.
   
   
3. If your state does not allow ballot return using email or fax, please vote and mail back your ballot as soon as possible.
   
   
4. Other options if you must mail back your ballot and postal mail isn't reliable or available in your country include (1) accessing the US Embassy/Consulate's diplomatic mail pouch (free but slow) and (2) private courier services (expensive but quick).
   It may also be possible to mail your ballot from within the US, but check with your Local Election Official first!