{"id":2337813,"date":"2024-09-06T11:13:01","date_gmt":"2024-09-06T15:13:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dem-plan-to-harvest-overseas-ballots-is-a-threat-to-fair-elections\/"},"modified":"2024-09-06T11:17:19","modified_gmt":"2024-09-06T15:17:19","slug":"dem-plan-to-harvest-overseas-ballots-is-a-threat-to-fair-elections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dem-plan-to-harvest-overseas-ballots-is-a-threat-to-fair-elections\/","title":{"rendered":"Dem Plan To Harvest Overseas Ballots Is A Threat To Fair Elections"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdem-plan-to-harvest-overseas-ballots-is-a-threat-to-fair-elections%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2337813&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>As the November elections approach, the\u200b Democratic National Committee (DNC) is making significant investments to capture votes from Americans living abroad,\u200c committing $300,000 to\u200b Democrats Abroad, the party&#8217;s organization focused on overseas engagement.\u200d DNC Executive\u200c Director Roger Lau emphasized the importance of every vote, \u200dparticularly from the estimated 9 million Americans living overseas, asserting that their contribution could be \u200ccrucial in a close election. However, this\u2064 figure contradicts a 2022 analysis by the \u2063Defense Department&#8217;s Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP), which suggested\u2064 that about 4.4 million Americans live\u200d overseas, with only 2.8 million of voting\u200d age.<\/p>\n<p>Recent commentary from The Association of Americans Resident\u2064 Overseas (AARO) highlights discrepancies in these estimates, noting that\u2063 the 9\u200d million figure includes all\u200c Americans outside the U.S. for any reason, including \u200btourists. AARO President Doris L. Speer pointed out that the \u200dDNC may\u200c be using\u200c this inflated figure to\u2063 raise expectations for voter participation. Despite uncertainties \u200bsurrounding \u200cthe actual number \u200bof eligible voters, the DNC&#8217;s investment\u200c signals their intent\u2064 to mobilize overseas voters, \u2064which\u200b historically tend to lean Democratic.<\/p>\n<p>While military personnel compose a\u200d portion \u200dof these voters, statistics indicate that a significant majority of ballots \u200dsubmitted\u2063 under\u2064 the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee\u200c Voting Act (UOCAVA) are\u200c from civilians living \u200cabroad. Democrats Abroad Chair Martha McDevitt-Pugh noted a\u200d surge in \u200dvoter registrations among Americans abroad following President Biden&#8217;s withdrawal from the race, \u200breflecting a growing\u2063 engagement that \u2062could influence the election results.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>With a close race looming in November, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) is investing big dollars in the global hunt for votes from Americans living abroad. But will these votes be protected from the vulnerabilities of the overseas voting system?<\/p>\n<p>In an <a href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-announces-innovative-six-figure-investment-in-democrats-abroad-to-ensure-engagement-of-key-voters-living-outside-u-s\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announcement<\/a> last month, the DNC revealed a $300,000 commitment to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democratsabroad.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Democrats Abroad<\/a>, the &ldquo;official Democratic Party arm&rdquo; in charge of &ldquo;mobilizing the overseas vote,&rdquo; according to its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.democratsabroad.org\/our_party\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">website<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>DNC Executive Director Roger Lau explained the decision in a <a href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-announces-innovative-six-figure-investment-in-democrats-abroad-to-ensure-engagement-of-key-voters-living-outside-u-s\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statement<\/a>, saying &ldquo;[t]his election will be won on the margins, and every single vote counts.&rdquo; He claimed this &ldquo;innovative investment in Democrats Abroad&rdquo; aims to &ldquo;register and earn the votes of the nearly 9 million Americans living and serving overseas,&rdquo; and that &ldquo;Democrats are leaving nothing to chance.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>That&rsquo;s a huge number of voters, and it contradicts a 2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fvap.gov\/info\/reports-surveys\/overseas-citizen-population-analysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">analysis<\/a> from the Defense Department&rsquo;s Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP), which claims that &ldquo;of the estimated 4.4 million&rdquo; U.S. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/queen-announces-british-voter-id-policy-washington-post-rushes-to-mock-conservatives-and-accuse-monarchy-of-racism\/\" title=\"Queen Announces British Voter ID Policy, Washington Post Rushes To Mock Conservatives And Accuse Monarchy Of \u2018Racism\u2019\">citizens living overseas<\/a>, only about 2.8 million of them are of voting age.<\/p>\n<p>In a November 2023 <a href=\"https:\/\/aaro.org\/living-abroad\/how-many-americans-live-abroad#:~:text=Department%20of%20State%20Estimate%3A%209,.%E2%80%9D%20See%20State%20Dept%20Brochure.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">study<\/a> from The Association of Americans Resident Overseas (AARO), Doris L. Speer, AARO president, says her organization &ldquo;found six estimates of the number of Americans living overseas, some widely divergent.&rdquo; Specifically addressing the claim that 9 million citizens live abroad, Speer notes the number is based on a State Department estimate that &ldquo;is said to count all Americans outside the U.S. <strong>for any reason, including tourists<\/strong>, not Americans <em>living<\/em> abroad&rdquo; (emphasis original).<\/p>\n<p>According to Speer, the 9 million estimate can be traced back to the State Department&rsquo;s Bureau of Consular Affairs&rsquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/travel.state.gov\/content\/dam\/travel\/CA-By-the-Number-2020.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">one-page brochure<\/a>, which states the 9 million number &ldquo;without explanation,&rdquo; as Speer notes.&rdquo; (Writing on behalf of the Democrats Abroad Press Team, Global Press Secretary Sharon Manitta confirmed in an email: &ldquo;That number [9 million] comes from the State Department of Consular Affairs.&rdquo;)<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We cannot determine the basis on which State has made this estimation,&rdquo; Speer notes in the report. However, &ldquo;according to the Defense Department&rsquo;s Federal Voting Assistance Program,&rdquo; she continues, &ldquo;the Department of State&rsquo;s estimates of the number of overseas civilians &lsquo;are used for contingency operations and appropriately result in an overestimation.&rsquo;&rdquo; (Speer confirmed over the phone that the quote she references here has since been removed from the cited FAQ section in the corresponding FVAP analysis.)<\/p>\n<h2><strong>&lsquo;No Stone Left Unturned<\/strong>&lsquo;<\/h2>\n<p>Right out of the gate, therefore, there are questions about the DNC&rsquo;s strategy and Lau&rsquo;s announcement that the DNC wants to aid in &ldquo;register[ing] and earn[ing] the votes of the nearly 9 million Americans living and serving overseas.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As a correspondent for the election integrity group Michigan Fair Elections (MFE), I talked with MFE Chair and Founder Patrice Johnson, who told me her theory: &ldquo;They appear to be citing 9 million to set expectations and nurture public acceptance of that number, despite the federal government indicating only 2.8 million voting-aged citizens reside overseas,&rdquo; she suggests.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>However, even though the DNC may have reported an overestimate in their funding announcement, their $300,000 investment and official statements in connection with the award are effectively telling Americans to be ready: Expect a flood of new UOCAVA votes and expect them to tend Democrat.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/crt\/uniformed-and-overseas-citizens-absentee-voting-act\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UOCAVA<\/a>) &ldquo;requires that the states and territories allow certain groups of citizens to register and vote absentee in elections for Federal offices.&rdquo; These voters are divided into three groups: military personnel, their dependent families, and U.S. citizens residing outside the United States.<\/p>\n<p>Many might presume most of these overseas voters are primarily military personnel and their families. However, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eac.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/2023-06\/2022_EAVS_Report_508c.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reporting<\/a> [p. 201]  to the 118th Congress, found that in 2022, 34 percent of UOCAVA ballots were transmitted to uniformed services while 64 percent were to overseas citizens. In 2014, the ratio of transmitted ballots was more evenly split between military (46.2 percent) and overseas citizens (51.6 percent).<\/p>\n<p>Martha McDevitt-Pugh, chair of Democrats Abroad, reportedly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/democrats-investment-voters-abroad-us-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told<\/a> CBS News last month that &ldquo;since Mr. Biden withdrew his candidacy on July 21, there&rsquo;s been a 100% increase in Americans abroad registering to vote and requesting their ballot through their votefrombroad.org website.&rdquo; McDevitt-Pugh reportedly added that, while &ldquo;political leanings vary from country to country, but they tend to lean Democratic for most.&rdquo; According to the FVAP, there are multiple countries with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fvap.gov\/info\/reports-surveys\/overseas-citizen-population-analysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">large numbers<\/a> of adult U.S. citizens, including Canada (605,697), the United Kingdom (298,268), and France (152,619).<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This election will be won on the margins, and with only three months until the election, every vote matters,&rdquo; the DNC investment <a href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-announces-innovative-six-figure-investment-in-democrats-abroad-to-ensure-engagement-of-key-voters-living-outside-u-s\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announcement<\/a> states. &ldquo;In what will be a close election, the DNC is leaving no <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/manti-teo-posts-video-reacting-to-documentary-detailing-catfishing-scandal\/\" title=\"Manti Te\u2019o Posts Video Reacting To Documentary Detailing Catfishing Scandal\">stone left unturned<\/a> to ensure that Kamala Harris will be the next president of the United States.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Vulnerable Votes<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Setting aside the question of precisely how many <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democratic-operatives-control-voter-rolls-in-31-states-report-shows\/\" title=\"Democratic Operatives Control Voter Rolls In 31 States, Report Shows\">voting-age citizens<\/a> are living overseas, the UOCAVA system presents election security challenges.<\/p>\n<p>Some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncsl.org\/elections-and-campaigns\/electronic-ballot-return-internet-voting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">states<\/a> let UOCAVA voters vote electronically, despite the security <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2023\/09\/07\/1192723913\/internet-voting-explainer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">concerns<\/a> of online voting. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s impossible to verify the identity or even the human existence of online nonmilitary registrations using regular email systems, yet 31 states are accepting voter registrations and electronic ballots,&rdquo; Johnson said in an internal report generated by MFE.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Many&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fvap.gov\/guide\/appendix\/faq\">states<\/a> also &ldquo;allow citizens who have never resided in the U.S.&rdquo; to vote using a parent&rsquo;s address, according to FVAP. The lax requirements lead activists like Johnson to fear that UOCAVA could &ldquo;open[] the door to unlimited foreign voting with no verification of residency or citizenship.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Kristine Christlieb is a senior correspondent for Michigan Fair Elections.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the November election approaches, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) is making a significant financial investment in efforts to secure votes from Americans residing overseas. However, concerns arise regarding the security of these votes within the overseas voting system. Last month, the DNC announced a $300,000 allocation to Democrats Abroad, which is described as the &#8220;official Democratic Party arm&#8221; responsible for mobilizing voters living abroad.<\/p>\n<p>DNC Executive Director Roger Lau emphasized that every vote will be crucial in this tight election and stated that this &#8220;innovative investment&#8221; aims to register and gain support from nearly 9 million Americans living and serving outside the U.S., asserting that &#8220;Democrats are leaving nothing to chance.&#8221; This figure contradicts a 2022 analysis by the Defense Department&#8217;s Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP), which estimated around 4.4 million U.S. citizens live abroad, with only about 2.8 million being of voting age.<\/p>\n<p>In a November 2023 report by The Association of Americans Resident Overseas (AARO), President Doris L. Speer noted discrepancies in estimates regarding Americans living overseas and pointed out that claims of 9 million are based on a State Department estimate that includes all individuals outside the U.S., such as tourists\u2014not just those residing abroad permanently.<\/p>\n<p>Speer highlighted that this estimate originates from an unsubstantiated State Department brochure and mentioned concerns about its accuracy since it has been used for contingency operations leading to potential overestimations.<\/p>\n<p>Questions arise about DNC&#8217;s strategy given Lau&#8217;s assertion regarding registering nearly 9 million overseas voters. Patrice Johnson, chair of Michigan Fair Elections (MFE), suggested they might be using this inflated number to shape public expectations despite federal data indicating only around 2.8 million eligible voters reside abroad.<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of potential overestimations in their funding announcement, DNC\u2019s $300,000 investment signals an expectation for increased participation among overseas voters who may lean Democratic due to various factors influencing political preferences across different countries.<\/p>\n<p>The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) allows certain groups\u2014including military personnel and citizens living outside America\u2014to register and vote absentee in federal elections. While many assume most overseas voters are military families, recent reports show a majority\u201464%\u2014of UOCAVA ballots were sent to civilians rather than military personnel.<\/p>\n<p>Martha McDevitt-Pugh from Democrats Abroad noted a surge in voter registrations among Americans abroad following President Biden\u2019s withdrawal from candidacy on July 21st; she indicated these individuals generally lean Democratic based on trends observed across various countries with large American populations like Canada and the UK.<\/p>\n<p>The DNC reiterated its commitment stating every vote counts as they prepare for what could be a close election aimed at ensuring Kamala Harris becomes president.<\/p>\n<p>However, there are significant security challenges associated with UOCAVA voting procedures; some states permit electronic voting despite inherent risks related to online systems where verifying identity can be problematic. Additionally, lax regulations allow individuals without residency ties in America\u2014such as those using parents&#8217; addresses\u2014to cast votes without proper verification processes leading activists like Johnson to express concerns over potential vulnerabilities within this system allowing unchecked foreign influence on elections<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3334,"featured_media":2337814,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ballot_in_the_box-e1725565285494.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[34382,6571,40294,32504,35823],"class_list":["post-2337813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-election-security","tag-elections","tag-overseas-ballots","tag-political-strategy","tag-voter-integrity"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ballot_in_the_box-e1725565285494.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2337813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3334"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2337813"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2337813\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2337814"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2337813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2337813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2337813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}