Eric Bronner
Founder, Veterans for All Voters
When we raise our right hand, we accept hard duties without complaint. But the country owes us one thing in return. If a military voter casts a ballot on time, that vote should be counted.
The history of military voting is the history of absentee and mail in voting. When Americans have gone to war, our elections have not stopped. Not even during the Civil War. We have long understood a simple truth. If someone is serving far from home, it is on the rest of us to make sure they can still have a voice in the democracy they defend.
That is why Veterans for All Voters is leading the charge to protect the rights of military and overseas voters.
Right now, with more than 200,000 troops stationed overseas and major combat operations ongoing in Iran, some service members and military families are scrambling to figure out how to vote in their states’ primary elections. For many, voting while forward deployed is not a routine errand. It is a logistics problem layered on top of duty, distance, and uncertainty.
And those primaries matter. In too many places, low turnout primaries effectively decide who holds power and whose voice gets heard.
Voting while on active duty, especially when forward deployed or overseas, can be extremely difficult. That is why it is up to us here at home to make voting for our active duty military and their overseas families as easy and secure as possible. States have made real progress. Thirty-one states, Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands allow certain overseas voters, often including service members and their families, to submit ballots electronically through secure systems. That is a practical innovation we should celebrate and expand.
But there is another safeguard that matters just as much for military and overseas voters. Reasonable ballot receipt grace periods.
A ballot cast on time from thousands of miles away can take longer to reach home through no fault of the voter. Military voters do not control flight schedules, mail routes, or operational tempo. They should not lose their voice because of delays tied to deployment and distance.
This is also where federalism matters. Our Constitution gives states primary responsibility for administering elections. State and local election officials, across more than 10,000 election jurisdictions, do the hard work of running elections that are secure, accountable, and trusted. That system is worth defending, especially when it comes to ensuring military and overseas ballots are counted according to state law.
Because of this proud history, Veterans for All Voters is championing a new pro military voting resolution that our members will be introducing at local Veterans of Foreign Wars Posts across the country this March and April. Our goal is simple. Build support Post by Post and carry that momentum to the VFW’s 127th National Convention in Reno this July.
The resolution calls on the VFW to advocate for the rights of states to set their own election rules, especially when it comes to reasonable Election Day ballot receipt grace periods for military and overseas voters covered by UOCAVA.
It also calls on the VFW to oppose any federal legislation (or executive action) that would eliminate or limit these state-based grace periods or make it harder for states to count every eligible military and overseas ballot.
This should not be a partisan issue. It should be an American standard. The people serving our country should not be penalized for serving our country.
There are self-serving calls in Washington to nationalize elections in ways that would override state laws and make it harder to fully count military and overseas votes. Veterans for All Voters, and our partners, strongly oppose unnecessary federal overreach that would weaken state authority and put military voters at risk of being left out.
Grace periods are not a loophole. They are a safeguard. They recognize reality. It is unreasonable to expect military and overseas voters to mail ballots far in advance of Election Day when major events, new information, and late breaking changes can happen in the final days of an election. When a service member casts a ballot on time and follows the rules, that vote should be counted when it arrives in accordance with state law.
If you are a VFW member, or you know someone who is, we need your help.
- Help us bring this resolution to your local VFW Post
- Help us build support across your district and state
- Help us carry this to the floor in Reno
- Reach out to fellow Veterans to get them to support this work
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