Pew applauds Florida for military and overseas voting improvements

From Stacie Temple of The Pew Center on the States on May 28:

Washington, D.C. - 05/28/2010 - Florida took meaningful steps forward today to address the disenfranchisement of military and overseas voters and answer a call first issued by President Harry Truman nearly 60 years ago. HB 131, which implements provisions in the federal Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act and resolves key voting problems for Americans abroad, was signed by Governor Charlie Crist.

Since Florida is one of the top three states with a significant military population, the legislation is critical to ensure that service members and citizens overseas have the opportunity to vote and have their votes counted. Representative Sandra Adams (R-District 33) sponsored the bill and championed the passage of the bipartisan legislation.

• The legislation removes obstacles that military and overseas voters commonly encounter by:
• mandating that absentee ballots for all elections be sent at least 45 days before an election for all military and overseas voters; and
• requiring e-mail transmission of blank absentee ballots to all military and overseas voters for all elections upon request.

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