Denying Our Soldiers The Vote

[Sandra]

Denying Our Soldiers The Vote
Source: investors.com/
URL Source: http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAna ... enying-Our-Soldiers-The-Vote.h
Published: Sep 23, 2010
Author: investors.com/

Election '10: The Department of Justice is failing to enforce a law that protects the voting rights of soldiers
overseas. They're allowed to fight and die for their country, but they
can't vote for its leaders?

Last Saturday was the deadline under the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act (MOVE) for states to have
sent unmarked absentee ballots to soldiers overseas so they can exercise
the same right to vote as those they risk their lives to protect,
including Afghans and Iraqis.

The MOVE Act, passed with overwhelming bipartisan support last year, says states must provide
overseas ballots 45 days before a federal election. Waivers can be
granted under certain circumstances, but only if states can prove the
votes of service members can still be cast and counted.

Five states — Delaware, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island and Washington —
were granted waivers. Other states have indicated they were having
difficulty complying, though it's hard to fathom what prevents them from
ensuring service members from their states can vote.

Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who co-authored the law, says that despite repeated
inquiries, DOJ has provided no substantive information on the level of
compliance or how Justice intends to enforce the MOVE Act.

"This law represents the most meaningful reform in this area in decades, but
it is not going to enforce itself," Cornyn wrote in a letter to Attorney
General Eric Holder.

"Full compliance by the states depends on the DOJ making it a priority. The disenfranchisement of military voters
must come to an end. If it is allowed to continue, it will represent a
shameful failure to honor the heroic service of those who defend
America."

Imagine the uproar and activity at DOJ if a Southern state failed to provide enough ballots to its rural minority
communities. Yet DOJ has been strangely silent on the issue of the right
and ability of military voters to cast their ballots.

Perhaps this administration's reluctance to guarantee the voting rights of
soldiers is due to the fact that the military leans further to the right
politically than the general voting public.

An April 8-11 Gallup poll found Americans overall were 26% Republican, 29% Democratic
and 42% independent. A survey of 1,800 active duty troops in the April
11 Military Times discovered that GIs were 41% Republican, 29% Democrat
and 32% independent.

In close elections, as many races promise to be in this turbulent year, military votes could make the difference.
An estimated 17,000 military voters were disenfranchised by missed
deadlines and administrative glitches in 2008. Such votes could have
changed the results of the Minnesota race that made comedian Al Franken a
U.S. senator. Maybe that's the whole idea.

[Sandra]

Not counting the Military votes has been going on before our current DOJ, it is criminal regardless of who is in power. They vote, some do not make it in time for the deadline and they don't help them get it in on time, then sometimes they just do not count the others for their own person greed and power game, it needs to stop. These people are dieing for this country and being injured... Then the PTB whine about the States cause the issue, yeah BS...

[Sandra]

Well, they are not being counted in most States and Virginia is supposed to be one of the worse states on this issue. We need to start demanding they are counted.. I recently read that absentee ballots are not counted unless there is a close race,(in some states) another right being violated..

[Dr.ThomasE.Davis,Colonel,USA-ret]

Just as their bravey and sacrifice are crucial to our safety, so is their ability to participate in the most basic of civil rights.