Fox News
Expand
Browse All Video
Watch Live

You're watching...

US military seeing huge drops in absentee ballot requests

Details

  • Description

    Military Voter Protection Project founder Eric Eversole weighs in

  • Duration 4:54
  • Date

Clips

Also in this playlist...

Latest News

Auto-advance: ON

Auto-advance
View All

Transcript

This transcript is automatically generated

We'll -- concern today over the number of soldiers voting overseas.

The US military sees a huge drop in absentee ballot requests this election season by service members ahead of this November election.

In Virginia alone there's been in 92%.

Drop in such requests why.

It's happening despite the implementation of -- 2009 boating law which was supposed to help military voters get their absentee ballots overseas.

-- -- -- is the founder of the military voter protection project he is not happy.

Eric YYE.

Is it's so -- 92% drop in Virginia a military heavily military state.

Yeah it's you know it's it's really shocking.

But most of the fingers point straight to the Pentagon.

The new law that was passed in 2009.

Was supposed to help.

Make it easier for our service members to register and request an absentee ballot.

The inspector general issued a report of course about.

Three weeks ago that indicated that the Pentagon did not implement that law did not fully implement that -- if they were supposed to.

And now overseen an anomaly in Virginia but throughout the United States are shockingly low numbers of -- about -- requested by US service members and their spouses.

So the dead.

Would be ballots are not getting to the guys and gals were serving -- -- overseas they're supposed to be setting up these.

Little regional offices and the Internet in Afghanistan correct where the guys in the gals can go.

And get their ballots.

Absolutely I mean this was supposed to be much like what civilians receiving a driver's license branch you walk into the driver's license branch.

And -- the first questions they ask you would you like to update your voter registration form.

When congress passed this -- in 2009.

They wanted Department of Defense to do the exact same thing for service members when they check into a -- duty station they're handed a bunch of forms.

Why not give them one -- -- so they can update the voter registration information.

Why wouldn't they do enemy attack -- it's not like you know.

I mean it's the Pentagon that's that's that's where these guys work basically why wouldn't they be taking care of our men and women in uniform.

Well you know that's a good question I think there are -- if there's plenty of time after the election that.

To figure out what exactly went wrong I personally believe that part of it is just.

Simply bureaucratic inertia.

You know the let's face that the Pentagon does a lot of things really well and keeping us safe but sometimes on some of the social issues -- really just doesn't have the motivation.

That I have with other issues and part of that simply because are focused on keeping America safe I get that.

But we're talking about it right that our service members are defending.

We really have to get out there and make sure those who are on the front -- -- of defending freedom ought to be able to participate -- It happened that it happens to -- five spyware before it is -- their boat -- they're they're.

They're not gonna get to vote.

Absolutely not we need every service -- we've set up a website called heroes vote dot org where service member can go win.

Very quickly register and request absentee ballot.

It takes maybe five minutes they can get that get a sent into their local registrar and they'll have about seven to ten days.

Part of that's because you know they can send -- via email.

It's not too late but we need him to visit heroes vote dot org so we can try to fix this -- as best we can.

You know there are supposed to make it easy for these guys because they're number one concern when they're over there is not getting their absentee ballot as important as the right to vote is that that's not a word of -- staying alive.

Getting better their families and so on so we're supposed to be facilitating.

This process for them.

I don't wanna -- people's votes but I mean if you if there are hierarchy you'd think the men and women are up there fighting for us would have.

The utmost importance in terms of who they want for this presidential election but.

That the Pentagon is saying it doesn't it doesn't have the resources that congress passed this law.

But they didn't give them the funding to set up all the troops need -- that they can facilitate the ballots being passed out Eric.

Well I don't I don't buy that at all they -- they received an appropriations 75 million dollars in FY eleven at like twelve.

75 million dollars to say you don't have the resources to make sure that our service members.

Can't receive.

Other -- -- -- participate in this election.

I just don't buy it it's one more excuse and I don't you know that's the time for excuses -- pass we can talk about excuses after the election.

But now we need to make military voting the highest priority.

We need to make sure that every single one of our service members get that opportunity to register request asked about it we need to do it now before the deadlines.

Come upon us.

Now it is that the survey show that these these voters tend to favor the Republican presidential candidate in this election latest surveys that it was.

This is back in May that it said that they -- Romney 50% to Obama 34 they tend to lean right he's military voters but.

They don't Volvo unit and and you say this year is the worst it has banned in terms of the voting assistance being provided which is really too bad Eric thank you.

Thank you.

Load More