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n Voting
Residency Guidelines for Overseas DoDDS Pacific U.S.
Citizens
NOTE: "Home of Record" should not be confused with legal residence
or voting residence. "Home of Record" is the address a military member
had upon entry into active duty, or a civilian employee recruited from the U.S.
had upon initial PCS to an overseas location. Once initially established, “Home
of Record” does not change. "Home of Record" and legal residence
or voting residence may be the same address and can remain so even though you
no longer live at that location, as long as you have not established a legal
residence or voting residence elsewhere.
At the time minor children (e.g.; high school students) first reaching voting
age (18), they typically assume the voting residence of either parent.
For civilian employees and their family members whose location in an overseas
area is NOT connected with a military sponsor, your voting residence is the state/territory
in which you last resided prior to your PCS from the U.S. This applies even though
you may no longer own property or have other ties to your last state/territory
of residence and your intent to return to that state/territory may be uncertain.
For civilian employees and their family members whose location in an overseas
area is connected with a military sponsor, you may not arbitrarily choose which
state/territory to declare as your voting residence without meeting the residency
requirements of that state/territory. The following are basic guidelines to follow
in determining voting residency for military sponsors and their family members:
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You
must have or previously had physical presence in
that state/territory and have the intent to remain
or make that state/territory your domicile (i.e.;
your home). |
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You
may only have only one voting residence at a time,
but may change your voting residency each time
you are transferred to a new location in the U.S.
or its territories. You must make a conscious decision
to change your voting residency; it cannot be done
incidentally. There must be certain specific actions
which can be interpreted as conscious decisions
(e.g., registering a car, qualifying for in-state
tuition, or renting or purchasing a residence). |
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Once
your voting residence is changed, you may not revert
to the previous a voting residence without re-establishing
new physical presence and intent to remain in,
or return to, that previous voting residence. |
If you have a voting residence situation that is not covered above, please consult
your base legal assistance office. |
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n Registering to Vote and Requesting a Voting Ballot
Because election laws vary the states/territories, consult the appropriate state/territory
instructions for how to register to vote and/or request an absentee ballot using
SF-76, Registration and Absentee Ballot Request - Federal Post Card Application
(FPCA). [Click Here For
State/Territory Instructions] The FPCA is used either for registering to
vote or requesting an absentee ballot, or for both purposes simultaneously. You
may obtain a cardstock FPCA from your school’s voter assistance officer.
All shaded areas of the FPCA outlined in the state/territory instructions for
your state/territory of residence must be completed. In the residence section
of the form, enter the complete street address (or rural route address) of your
last residence in that state/territory. If using a rural route number, enter
the specific location of the residence in the "Remarks" section (your
right to vote in your state/territory and determination of voting precinct depend
on you identifying your physical residence while you were within that state/territory).
You should submit the FPCA at least 60-90 days prior to election day in order for there to be sufficient time prior to election day for local
election officials to establish (or verify) your voter registration and mail
you their official absentee ballot, and then for you to complete the absentee
ballot and return it by mail. |
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n On-Line
Version of the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA)
(Can NOT Be Used By Residents of American
Samoa or Guam)
The on-line version of the SF-76, Registration and Absentee Ballot Request
- Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) is an alternative to the cardstock FPCA.
The on-line FPCA is in Adobe Acrobat format and can be filled in on-line, printed
out, signed, dated, placed in an envelope with proper postage and then mailed
to the appropriate local election official (alternately, you may print out
the blank FPCA and complete it by printing the entries by hand in blue or black
ink). There are no provisions for submission of the on-line FPCA through the
Internet to local election officials. For filling in the on-line FPCA in Adobe
Acrobat on your computer, set the Acrobat Reader Page Size to 150%, use the “mouse” or
the TAB key to move forward from field to field (Shift-TAB will move backwards),
and use the computer “mouse” in Section 8 (you must choose one
of the categories listed in Section 8). [Click
Here For On-Line SF-76, Registration and Absentee Ballot Request - Federal
Post Card Application (FPCA) and State/Territory Instructions]
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n County
of Residence Within A Voting Residence State
States require that you include on the FPCA the county in which you reside
for voting purposes. If you do not know your voting residence county, you can
find it by using the U.S. Census Bureau county locator webpage. [Click Here
For U.S. Census Bureau County Locator]
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n Reasons
Local Election Officials Have Been Unable In The Past To
Process Federal Post Card Applications (FPCA)
• The form was not completed in accordance with the state/territory instructions.
• The voting residence address was incomplete, incorrect or illegible.
• A current mailing address was not provided.
• A Section 8 category was not marked.
• The form was not signed and dated.
• The form was illegible. |
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