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Any fun stories about voting overseas?

Any fun stories about voting overseas?

Jeff Ballard
Jeff Ballard 661 XP · · 0 replies

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In 2024, I spent four months hiking across Nepal. I called my local election office and was told sorry, I had to call back the next day because Cindy (not her real name), the only person who handled overseas voting, was out.

Turns out Cindy was lovely, and although I had to explain where Kathmandu was, she helped me through the process of getting a special remote area ballot ahead of time so I could turn it in at the embassy before heading to the mountains.

I ended up printing it out in a souvenir store, then having to call the embassy security hotline on a Sunday. The 19-year-old Marine opened the gate just for me. He said we had to X-ray the envelope, which I thought was pretty funny. Then he held out the clearly homemade ballot box, which looked to be decorated by children.

Sure enough, I got an email a few weeks later that my ballot had been received by Cindy back in the U.S.

I always love that you can call your local election office, which is filled with lovely people who will help you through the process. Sometimes it is a bit difficult, but it is worth it every time.

vote.gov

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