I can't seem to find a straight answer online... My girlfriend will be in China through the election. She'd like to vote, but she is afraid that the ballot sent to her now will not have enough time to be mailed to China and then mailed back, as it takes a couple of weeks to travel by mail each way. So my question is: can I fill out her absentee ballot for her if she gives me a written consent? Or is that voter fraud. I'm not sure how to figure out what the law is regarding this situation.
Nope the ballot needs to be done by her hand and her hand only but her vote still will be counted as long as the ballots postal date when she sends it back is before nov7
The forms are different from State to State but generally with the voter certificate that comes with your ballot, there is a place where you can certify that you are helping someone else with submitting their ballot. Here's a sample of what it might look like: So you'd need to fill out your information and make sure you fill it out correctly to represent her choices. Your ballot should also come with an instruction page to explain exactly what the rules are in your state. If you still are unsure and want to make sure you're doing it correctly, with her package will come the phone numbers of the City Clerks office that can answer any of your questions.
I suspect it is voter fraud for anyone other than the party to which the ballot was sent, to fill it out, and it probably says so in the information included in the envelope. I am pretty sure your secretary of States office has a number to call with questions just like that. Her signed 'permission slip' does not contravene statutory language but it would likely persuade a DA's office not to press election fraud charges, unless they are feeling like setting an example that day.
By the way, you can use express mail to mail your ballot...so that would cost her a little more but would make it in time.
That's incorrect. There are many Americans who are unable to fill out their ballots due to handicaps, for instance. That doesn't mean they can't vote.
Well, I'm learning that this is different form state to state. In my state the ballot must be submitted by 8:00 PM on election day. It is also a felony to fill out someone else's voter form.
She's too late. She should have filled out that paperwork when she realized she was going to be in China for the election.
That is unless a candidate is one like Al Gore who purposedly oversaw how Overseas Military Ballots were NOT counted in the 2000 Florida Fiasco. Instead of making sure as George Bush did,to pressure the Postal Office to make doggone sure the postal markings for late ballots be accepted in the 2000 Florida recount.Not only did AL Gore make a big fuss of contesting the election { actually he gave a concession speech around 2:30am est } and then decided that the race was opening up.By Morning the race was within mandatory state recount territory.Nevertheless Gore pulled out every trick to take the recount away from Bush.Using The most Liberal State Supreme Court in the Country as well cherry-picking only certain counties like Broward and Miami-Dade for the counting of chads.Where most the Election Officials were rabid Democrats. We actually saw them cheat in passing over chad after chad when the vote appeared to be for Bush.
