Bill helps those in service to vote

Senator Pappageorge's Guest Opinion column, reprinted from The Oakland Press:

The votes of the brave men and women serving overseas in our Armed Forces are just as important as those of U.S. citizens living stateside.

They fight for our freedom and deserve to have their voices heard and their votes counted.

In 2006 an estimated 1 million ballots were issued for military and overseas voters but only a third were returned — as many of those voters face procedural hurdles and tight deadlines to have their ballots counted in a timely fashion.


As a retired U.S. Army colonel and veteran of two tours in Vietnam, I know the sacrifices that individuals in uniform make for our freedom and their right to vote should not be one of them. That is why I helped craft a package of bills designed to guarantee the voting rights for those serving in the military or living overseas.

These proposals would help ensure that they are able to participate in the democratic process they are protecting. If the Senate measures become law, U.S. military personnel stationed outside the continental United States would receive electronic ballots that can be downloaded, filled out, and mailed back to clerks. Many military personnel are unable to return ballots in time if they are in places like Iraq or Afghanistan.

The average completion rate for an overseas Michigan ballot is 57 days, according to a national report issued in 2009 by the Pew Center on the States, based in Washington, D.C.

My measure, Senate Bill 1096, would require ballots be delivered to the county clerk at least 47 days before an election.

This would allow sufficient time for the electronic ballot system to work.

I sponsored SB 1096 to help ensure that those serving in the military overseas protecting our freedom have an opportunity to take part in the electoral process and I look forward to seeing my bill and the other important measures in the package become law.

State Sen. John Pappageorge, R-Troy, is vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He represents the 13th Senate District, consisting of the cities of Berkley, Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Clawson, Madison Heights, Royal Oak and Troy and Bloomfield Township.