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˜ Ben Nelson
July 23, 2009 –Nebraska’s Senator Ben Nelson submitted the following statement into the Congressional Record today concerning the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act he co-authored with Rules Committee Chairman Chuck Schumer and Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss. Nelson is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel. This afternoon, the Senate unanimously adopted the bill as an amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill expected to pass the Senate soon. The MOVE Act will make it easier for service members serving overseas to vote in U.S. federal elections.
SENTOR NELSON: “Mr. President, I rise in strong support of Amendment 1764, better known as the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act. I want to express my appreciation to Senators Schumer and Chambliss for their leadership and excellent work on this issue, and acknowledge the outstanding support and contributions of Senators Bennett and Cornyn, whose involvement has improved this bill and whose ongoing support will help us enact it into law. This effort has been constructive and bipartisan all the way, as evidenced by our list of 59 bipartisan cosponsors, and I am very proud of the bill we have produced.
“Mr. President, we owe it to our men and women in uniform to protect their right to vote. And for military and overseas voters, that right is only as good as their ability to cast a ballot and have it counted. For years, we have known of the obstacles these brave Americans face in exercising their right to vote, often when far from home and in harm’s way. I firmly believe this legislation will make a huge impact in empowering our military and overseas voters to have their votes counted, no matter where they find themselves on Election Day.
“Simply put, the status quo for these voters is unacceptable. It is hard for military families to keep their voter registration information current, and it is often difficult to deliver ballots to overseas voters in enough time for them to vote and return the ballot by the time the polls close.
“The poor results from recent elections speak for themselves. In 2008, statistics from the seven states with the greatest number of deployed troops show that one in four military and overseas voters were unable to have their vote counted. In 2006, the situation was even worse: according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, up to two-thirds of ballots requested by voters under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Voting Act were either not cast or not counted.
“Mr. President, we discussed these numbers and heard testimony from state and local officials at a hearing in the Rules Committee earlier this year. The challenges we face are significant, but a number of very excellent recommendations were made at that hearing, and Senators Schumer and Chambliss and I immediately got to work on a common-sense bill to improve and streamline the process for these voters. The bill we came up with was amended and reported unanimously by the Rules Committee last week. The product of that effort is now before the Senate as an amendment to the Defense bill.
“I urge the adoption of the amendment and I will push for it to be enacted into law in this bill, because as state and local election officials know, voting reforms need to be put in place well in advance. The way they see it, the next federal election is right around the corner. Now is our chance to make a difference for 2010.
“This legislation harnesses technology to speed up the voting process by allowing registration and ballot requests to be sent electronically. It ensures that military and overseas voters have time to vote by requiring ballots to be sent out 45 days before the election, and allowing blank ballots to be sent electronically. It also provides some flexibility to states who cannot meet the 45-day deadline, as long as they come up with an alternative plan to ensure time to vote. In addition, it will harness the creativity of states and local officials by authorizing pilot projects to test new voting technology, with appropriate safeguards for privacy and security. The legislation also requires the Department of Defense to play a more significant role in facilitating voter registration and in collecting and returning voted ballots in cooperation with the Postal Service.
“Mr. President, the MOVE Act, as we call it, has the support of the Alliance for Military and Overseas Voting Rights, which is a coalition of over 30 military associations, non-profit organizations, elected officials and student groups dedicated to ensuring that Americans abroad have an equal right and opportunity to vote. We also have the support of many other groups, including the National Association of County Officials, which is especially important, because having the support of state and local officials means that our efforts are endorsed by the people who actually carry out elections in this country, which can often be a thankless job.
“In conclusion Mr. President, I would like to thank all 57 of the amendment’s cosponsors, especially Senators Schumer and Chambliss and the others I mentioned who have shown real leadership on this issue. This amendment is bipartisan, non-controversial, and necessary to solve a persistent problem that has dogged our troops and overseas voters for years. We tackle those problems head-on, and I think we will see real, tangible results from this legislation.
“Mr. President, it is our responsibility to ensure the right to vote for the men and women of our armed forces and others serving overseas; they protect our rights, and we have an opportunity today to return the favor by passing the MOVE Act. I urge the amendment’s adoption, and I yield the floor.”
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