Sen. Cornyn's Bipartisan Military Voting Reforms Become Law

Press Release

"After decades of encountering roadblocks to exercising their right to vote, our service members today will have additional resources and less bureaucratic red tape"

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, today issued the following statement after President Obama signed into law several pieces of legislation he sponsored to improve voting for service members overseas. Central provisions of Sen. Cornyn's Military Voting Protection Act (MVP Act) and his Military Voters' Equal Access to Registration Act (MVEAR Act) are included in a comprehensive military voting reform bill and all part of the FY10 National Defense Authorization Act.

Sen. Cornyn successfully inserted major provisions of his bills into the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act (MOVE Act), ensuring that overseas troops are provided expedited delivery of their completed ballots, and that they and their families have unfettered access to voter assistance on military bases under a program modeled after the well-known "motor voter" program.

"After decades of encountering roadblocks to exercising their right to vote, our service members today will have additional resources and less bureaucratic red tape. The MOVE Act represents the most sweeping reform of military and overseas voting law in a long time, and its significance cannot be overstated. I'm proud to have worked with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to enact these common-sense reforms, which come just in time to help our troops and their family members participate in the November 2010 elections. Many thousands of these brave Americans continue to serve in harm's way in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere, and the MOVE Act will go a long way toward helping them participate in elections, a right which they fight each day to safeguard for their fellow citizens. Today, we have taken a major step to end the disenfranchisement of our troops and their families," Sen. Cornyn said.

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