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Can changes be made to the Voting Center hours, dates, or locations after the December 31 deadline?
Answer
Late changes present the GPP Team with a serious problem, because DA should distribute the final list of Voting Centers by January 11, when ballots for remote voting become available.
According to the DSP, any changes after December 31 would require the written agreement of the International Chair -- after a formal request from the Country Committee chair.
If there is a change after the official list is published -- which is, again, expected to be finished by January 11 -- our DSP will require an expensive "effort at public notification" to correct the mistaken impression given by the initial list. The costs of that effort will be the Country Committee's responsibility. Still, once the list goes online, there will forever be an old and inaccurate version out there, seeding misinformation.
It's not enough to say, "Our members will get plenty of notices about the new location," because this Voting Center must serve all Americans residing in a chapter's territory -- and also Americans living elsewhere who know that they will visit the area in March.
The Dec 31 deadline exists for a reason. We should adopt a final list of Voting Centers early enough to give voters the information they need to decide whether to vote by mail. Voting by mail starts January 11. As it is, the GPP Team will need to scramble to assemble the final list of Voting Centers by that date.
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....
Who can vote in the Global Presidential Primary? Is there same-day registration?
Answer
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.
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Is there a relationship between a Country Committee's compliance with the DA Charter and its participation in the Global Presidential Primary?
Answer
The Country Committees that can participate in the Global Presidential Primary with Voting Centers are the CCs that are "in good standing" (which mostly means "in compliance with DA's Charter") as of December 31, 2015. Not coincidentally, that's the same deadline for most of the information that CC chairs need to provide about how they'll run the Global Presidential Primary. Country Committees need to stay in good standing to participate in the subsequent steps, such as the Regional Caucus and the Global Convention. There are several Charter-mandated deadlines between Dec 31, 2015 and the Global Convention, such as the membership verification process.