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Can voters living abroad vote in both the GPP and their home state's Democratic primary?
Answer
The GPP Team is eager to provide straightforward language to help you explain the situation to fellow Democrats living abroad. When we finished the “short version” last week, we decided to get that in your hands as early as possible. So here it is:
Many voters living abroad wonder how voting in the Global Presidential Primary affects voting in state primaries. As a Democrat living abroad, you may vote in only one primary for a Presidential candidate. In other words, you may vote for a Presidential candidate in EITHER the Global Presidential Primary, OR your home state’s primary (or caucus if you happen to be there).
When you vote in DA’s Global Presidential Primary, you may not vote for a Presidential candidate in your voting state’s primary. BUT you may still vote in your home state’s primary for US House and Senate and other down ballot races as determined by your local election official.
How will DA's current members learn about voting by email, post, or fax?
Tentative Answer
The first date that DA's current members will be able to request a remote ballot is January 11. (A "remote ballot" is a ballot returned by email, post, or fax – rather than a ballot voted in-person at a Voting Center.) By that time, every CC will have designated an individual to receive those requests by email (and by post). A global team of volunteers will also respond to requests emailed to a central email address and sent to a central postal address. The global and CC-level contacts will be published on DA's website along with an announcement that DA members who cannot come to a local Voting Center may vote by email, post, and fax....
All American citizens who will be 18 by the date of the general election (Nov 8, 2016), who live outside the United States and its territories, and who wish to participate as Democrats. In order to participate as a Democrat, one must be a member of Democrats Abroad. Qualified individuals may join DA on the day of the primary.
Our DSP mentions a deadline of January 31, 2016 that can be misleading. The DSP states that all members of Democrats Abroad as of January 31 are "presumed qualified to vote in the Global Primary unless proof can be established to the contrary." The intent of this statement is to set a high bar for disenfranchising these Americans living abroad.
This statement does not mean that individuals joining Democrats Abroad after January 31 are not qualified to vote. It simply means that they may be asked for evidence of their eligibility to vote. (Guidelines on when and how to ask for such evidence will be part of the Guide for Voting Center Managers.)
Americans living abroad may join Democrats Abroad after January 31 and still cast a valid remote ballot by mail, fax, or email, up to the same deadlines that apply to everyone else. This is true for in-person voting at Voting Centers as well.
Checking eligibility to vote at a Voting Center
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