Sen. Cornyn, Rep. McCarthy Renew Effort To Protect Military Voters; Ensure Every Overseas Ballot Counts

Press Release

Sen. Cornyn, Rep. McCarthy Renew Effort To Protect Military Voters; Ensure Every Overseas Ballot Counts

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Republican leadership, and U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., a member of the House Republican leadership and the Ranking Member of the Committee on House Administration's Elections Subcommittee, today re-introduced the Military Voting Protection (MVP) Act, legislation designed to protect the voting rights of our troops serving abroad by ensuring their absentee ballots are delivered back home in time to be counted and do not get lost on the way. Numerous military support organizations and veterans' service organizations supported the MVP Act last Congress.

"In the November 2006 election, the most recent election for which we have official data, just 5.5 percent of eligible military and overseas citizen voters were able to cast a ballot. This is a national disgrace. It is imperative that we put a system in place to ensure our troops serving abroad can participate in the democratic process. It is because of their sacrifice that every American has the right to vote in free and fair elections; the least we can do is guarantee them these same civil rights. The MVP Act is intended to do just that. It would dramatically improve the process for our men and women in uniform to help ensure every one of their votes matters," said Sen. Cornyn.

"Our troops are sacrificing overseas fighting to protect our freedoms, and shouldn't face another round of electoral obstacles greater than any other eligible voters. We know overseas military votes go uncounted, and we know how to help fix the problem. The MVP Act is our opportunity for a bipartisan common-sense solution to protect the votes of our troops and ensure they are counted," said Rep. McCarthy.

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