A group of House Democrats is protesting proposed Republican-led voting restrictions to crack down on overseas voting, saying the measure, the latest in a series of Republican-led efforts to strengthen election security, is overly restrictive. They say thousands of U.S. military personnel are at risk of having their rights stripped from them. I am stationed overseas.
Their protest comes just weeks after six of the eight House Republicans in Pennsylvania's congressional delegation filed a federal lawsuit earlier this month asking the Keystone State to add additional vetting procedures for Americans living abroad. I woke up.
The Republican plaintiffs argued that current law allows these residents to register and vote in elections without proper identification. They then “receive their ballots by email and can vote without presenting identification at any stage of the process,” the group claimed.
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Town of Charleroi, Pennsylvania. (Adam Shaw/Fox News Digital)
But that argument ran into stiff resistance from six Democrats in Congress, and the level of scrutiny sought by Republicans would significantly affect the rights of “tens of thousands” of overseas voters in the state, including U.S. service members and members of the military. He argued that he would be deprived. A woman stationed overseas.
In a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, six Democrats, all of whom served in the U.S. military, expressed deep concerns about the lawsuit and the potential for discounting the votes of U.S. military personnel in key battleground states. .
Sent by Rep. Pat Ryan of New York, Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, Rep. Chrissy Houlahan and Rep. Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, and Rep. Mike Thompson and Rep. Salud Carvajal of California. The letter, shared with Fox News, argued that the Republican-led push is unwarranted. It's a baseless attempt to discount the votes of former Republicans, who have shifted in recent years to support Democratic candidates.
The lawsuit could result in “tens of thousands” of military personnel overseas being stripped of their rights, they added.
And in close elections, this group of voters could play a decisive role.
More than 1.2 million overseas votes were cast in the 2020 election. According to the data From the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. In Pennsylvania alone, there are approximately 25,000 registered U.S. voters living overseas.
Houlahan, an Air Force veteran, told Fox News that “election-denying extremists are actively working to disenfranchise members of the U.S. military deployed outside the United States because they fear they will lose this election.” “I'm here,” he said.
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Six Pennsylvania House Republicans have filed a federal lawsuit against the Keystone State seeking to add additional vetting procedures for Americans living abroad. (St. Petersburg)
He added that all six Republicans named in the lawsuit also voted against certifying Pennsylvania's electoral votes in the 2020 election.
But in the dead heat of the presidential election, these legal battles are not limited to Pennsylvania.
In recent weeks, Republicans have filed similar lawsuits challenging overseas voter registration procedures in North Carolina and Michigan. Both states are considered “swing states” for the 2024 election, with Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump on roughly equal footing. neck and neck.
Republican plaintiffs argued in both states that overseas voters did not meet the necessary criteria to register and vote.
Asked for comment, Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, one of the six plaintiffs, told Fox News the lawsuit is “simple.”
The Pennsylvania Department of State is “unlawfully diluting the legitimate votes of the brave men and women who serve our country and their families,” he said in a statement. “Unelected career bureaucrats have no right to ignore federal laws that guarantee elections.”
“In the Navy JAG unit, I went to the red zone in Baghdad every day. This is personal to me,” he added. “I will always support those in uniform whose right to secure elections should be protected.”
Hoolahan, however, dismissed the lawsuit in his own statement, telling Fox News that the lawsuit is “an attack on the patriotism of the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and guardians who are sworn to protect and protect the United States.” Also for spouses and family members living overseas.
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“It is desperate, cynical and unconstitutional to seek to strip Americans of their right to vote and have their votes counted, regardless of where they live,” Houlahan said.
There are also important issues that call for a position in each case.
Although federal law leaves each state to establish its own election rules, the Uniform and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) tasks the Secretary of Defense with implementing the following policies: Register and vote For U.S. military and government employees living overseas.
UOCAVA, passed in 1986, states that the voting process for Americans living abroad should not be “unduly burdensome.” The system has also been significantly revised and modernized twice to improve the overseas voting process, according to one report. Congressional Research Service Report.
These changes were ordered in 2001 in response to controversy over the 2000 presidential election, which involved votes cast by U.S. voters in Florida and overseas, and then in 2009 as a result of new efficiency standards included in the 2010 NDAA. ordered.
Vice President Kamala Harris greets military personnel at the North Carolina Air National Guard in Charlotte, North Carolina. (AP/Chris Carlson)
“While some of our colleagues are actively trying to sow discord and misinformation, we will continue to implement President Biden's executive orders and federal law to the fullest extent possible and ensure that all Americans We urge you to ensure that people have a constitutionally guaranteed right to participate in federal elections,” the lawmakers wrote to Austin.
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It's unclear how the case will turn out, but a Michigan judge last week said the Republican plaintiffs waited too long to bring their claims to court and that the court “should not change the rules of this election.” he pointed out. – Half a week ago. ”
North Carolina will hear from Republicans this week.
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