FORT CARSON, Colo. -- The 2014 general election is 60 days away, and the Fort Carson voting assistance officer said now is the perfect time to be thinking about absentee voting.
"Hopefully people have thought about it well before now, but the big thing is that we're (at) 60 days out from the general elections. It's an important year," said Sherry Jenkins, installation voting assistance officer.
This year voters will decide 33 seats in the U.S. Senate, all 435 U.S. House of Representative seats, governorships in 36 states and three U.S. territories and a number of state and local offices and ballot questions.
"Voting is our opportunity to make our voices heard. It's not too late to register and vote," Jenkins said.
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel said that the right to vote is "democracy's most important responsibility" and that to those serving in the military uniform, voting is more than just a civic responsibility, "it's about exercising the right you've sworn to defend."
Jenkins said that even though Soldiers and their Family members may be away from the place they consider home, it's still important to vote. Absentee voters can access the Federal Voting Assistance Program's website at http://www.fvap.org to find links to state election websites for information about local races and issues.
The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act of 1986 allows certain citizens to register and vote absentee. Eligible U.S. citizens include:
--Members of the armed forces or merchant marines who are absent from their voting jurisdiction because of their service
--Dependents of those servicemembers who are absent from their voting jurisdiction
--Citizens residing outside the U.S. and its territories.
Jenkins said that servicemembers sometimes confuse their home of record with their voting residence.
"They may be different," she said. "(Home of record) can be changed when servicemembers are assigned to a new duty station, but this is not automatic."
Residency requirements vary by state. Jenkins encourages Soldiers who want to change their legal state of residence to contact the post legal office to discuss the possible implications, which include state income taxes.
"It is important to also note that spouses' and eligible Family members' legal residency does not automatically change with the servicemember. This is an individual decision," she said.
People can visit the FVAP website to register to vote and to request an absentee ballot.
"Each state is required to have at least one electronic means of submitting the federal post card application which registers you and requests an absentee ballot," Jenkins said. "We even have the opportunity to complete the federal write-in absentee ballot (online) if we didn't get our ballot in time."
Each state sets its own registration and ballot deadlines, so Jenkins recommends that voters act sooner rather than later. Individuals can visit the FVAP website or Jenkins' office in building 1218, room 105, for assistance. Soldiers can also ask their unit personnel section how to contact their unit voting assistance officer. Jenkins recommends that registered absentee voters complete the federal write-in absentee ballot if they do not receive their absentee ballot from their state 30 days prior to the election, which is Nov. 4.
The installation voting assistance office is available year-round to assist Soldiers, Family members, retirees and Department of Defense civilians and contract employees with voting issues.
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