Group urges Americans in PH to vote abroad as U.S. elections nears

As the 2020 United States presidential election nears, a group of Filipino-Americans and Americans living in the Philippines made it their mission to encourage fellow citizens to cast their ballots, even while abroad.

Democrats Abroad Philippines has been leading a handful of projects, such as online consultations and webinars, to help Americans based in the country be aware of how they can vote while abroad and take part in the US elections. 

The group is the Philippine chapter of Democrats Abroad, the official organization of the Democratic Party that gives nonpartisan voter assistance to approximately 7 million eligible overseas voters, according to their estimates.

In the Philippines alone, the US Embassy estimates there are 350,000 US citizens in the country.

Although US citizens living abroad can still exercise their voting rights remotely, Democrats Abroad Philippines chairperson Lisa Pagkalinawan said many Americans in the country are not aware that they can do this. She shared how several Americans are often surprised that there were mechanisms allowing them to vote abroad, saying they believed they had forfeited that right when they moved to the Philippines.

Efforts to further involve and educate US citizens in the country are even harder to stage in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, especially as eligible voters have to cross hurdles on several fronts just to register and vote.

Among these challenges are the delayed processing of international mail due to the pandemic, and rampant postal delays in the US because of a deluge of backlogs and budget cuts. This has severely handicapped the US postal system from promptly sorting through the documents sent to them, which may delay the processing of any registration forms and ballots sent from US citizens in the Philippines.

US law ensures that US citizens living abroad may exercise their right to vote in federal elections by registering and requesting an absentee ballot from the state they last lived in. 

Although the required documents are roughly the same in all states, the guidelines for registering vary widely for each. For example, the deadline for registering has already passed for a number of states, although others will still accept registration forms by Election Day.

There are also states that accept registration forms and ballots via email or fax. However, more than 20 states including Texas and New York require these documents to be sent exclusively through mail.

Since eligible voters risk delayed mail due to postal delays in the US, their forms may not be filed in time for Election Day on November 3, 2020. 

“I urge my fellow US citizens here in the Philippines to register as quickly as possible [to dodge these possible mail delays],” said Pagkalinawan. 

Start of Democrats Abroad Philippines

When Barack Obama ran for presidency in 2007, Pagkalinawan and other US citizens she had connected with decided to launch Democrats Abroad Philippines to consolidate efforts in amplifying the call to vote. 

In light of the upcoming elections, the Democrats Abroad Philippines team has been helping overseas Americans in the Philippines file their registration forms remotely. They’ve reached out to at least 500 of their members to urge them to register and vote. They’ve also been holding regular Zoom meetings with the organization and one-on-one consultations upon request.

Although Democrats Abroad Philippines has more than 800 members to date, roughly 10 volunteer members are on the front lines of the campaign.

“I feel really challenged. We need to reach out to a lot of people, but this takes so much time and energy from our small group of volunteers,” said Pagkalinawan. 

This team had begun amplifying the call to vote even before the start of the presidential elections. When the Democratic primaries began in June 2019, they spearheaded initiatives, such as primary debate watch parties and campaigns to share information about the electoral contests. 

Mobilizing voters

Aside from equipping these citizens with updated news about the elections through their website, Democrats Abroad seeks to mobilize citizens in casting their vote. They have provided an array of nonpartisan tools and services in a bid to help voters regardless of political affiliation. 

One of these is votefromabroad.org, their own website updated regularly to account for the constantly changing rules in each state. 

Despite the hurdles, Pagkalinawan emphasized the importance of voting to address the issues the US faces, which can also have an impact on their lives in the Philippines. 

For instance, US income tax regulations dictate that citizens abroad must still pay a portion of their taxes, greatly affecting their disposable income. 

“It’s really important that all US citizens participate in the political process, because these policies still affect us [in the Philippines] and the rest of the world,” she said. 

Those who want to connect with Democrats Abroad Philippines for some guidance on the voting process can reach out to them through Pagkalinawan at +63 917 892 2989. – Rappler.com