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The remote vote – Does it count?
by Kate Hersey

Every time the USA elects a new President, it seems that the whole world is voting. Everyone has an opinion and the media is full of headlines on the topic. On November 4, however, the final decision will be made solely by US citizens. And in an election that looks to be a tight race up until the very end, every vote counts. Including my own.

I recently had a discussion with a close friend who questioned whether it makes sense for me to vote from abroad. Does my vote from abroad even matter? Why is it important? Will it be counted?

I agree that there is skepticism, especially after the ballot mishaps in 2004, but in the wake of the Bush administration the will for change is strong. I’m an optimist and I won’t have troubles from the past deter me from voting.

But what about the around six million other US citizens living overseas? Unlike in Australia, voting in the USA is not compulsory. In the 2004 election, only around 56% of eligible US citizens took advantage of their right to vote.

Often voters residing outside of the USA don’t know how to go about voting from abroad says Todd St Vrain, NSW Chair of Democrats Abroad [1]. In an effort to raise public awareness and mobilize potential voters, local Democratic Party volunteers have been handing out leaflets asking Sydneysiders to: “Tell an American to vote!”

To further support the expatriate US community in voting from outside the USA the website http://www.votefromabroad.com/ [2] was established for this election. The site contains helpful directions on how to vote from overseas along with other information surrounding the election.

“It’s a significant development since 2004,” says St Vrain. “Its going to be a tight election as the past several elections have been, so hopefully [the website is] facilitating, so more people can vote.”

University of Sydney student and US citizen Michelle Jimerson has taken advantage of the website and will also be voting. “I think its very important to vote regardless of where you are,” she says. “It’s a privilege that I can vote, so I definitelly want to take advantage of it.”

But there seems to be a significance to the expatriate vote in this election that goes beyond the legal right. “I think that we as Americans living abroad feel very much first hand the consequences of the policies of the Bush administration,” says St Vrain. “Suddenly a lot of people don’t hold the US in the esteem that they once did.”

Jimerson says she not only sees her vote as being a voice, but a contribution. “It’s important [to vote], because America is a powerful source and if it can be seen as more of a positive powerful source then that’s good,” she says.

I come to the same conclusion. While taking advantage of my right to vote in this election is important to me, I am hoping for more. I don’t just want my vote to be counted, I want it to count.