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From Townhall: Republican lawmakers demand answers from the Pentagon after military service members complained that they have not received enough absentee ballots to vote before Election Day.
GOP Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), and Mike Waltz (R-FL) sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin citing their “grave concern over deficiencies in the Defense Department’s protocols” for the U.S. military because they said the absentee ballot stockpile has been “depleted and had not been replenished.”
“Our nation’s brave men and women in uniform brought to our attention that there has been inadequate education at the administrative level on how to register to vote, request an absentee ballot, and fill in a federal write-in absentee ballot if their state-issued ballot does not arrive in time,” the letter reads. “Other service members also stated that when a request for a federal write-in absentee ballot was made, they were told the base’s stockpile of such ballots was depleted and had not been replenished.”
The lawmakers also wrote that the Pentagon offered “inadequate education” on how service members can vote while deployed.
A press release by the three Republican congressmen on Friday reads:
Today, Reps. Brian Mast (FL-21), Bill Huizenga (MI-04), and Michael Waltz (FL-06) blew the whistle on the Pentagon’s negligence in facilitating the ability of every active duty armed service member across the nation and overseas to vote this election cycle. As such, the congressmen are demanding Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin mobilize the Pentagon’s resources to ensure eligible active duty service members are afforded the opportunity to vote if they so choose.
“Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have mobilized federal manpower, resources, and tax dollars to block state-level election integrity measures, including in Georgia and Virginia, through lawsuits and smears,” said Rep. Mast. “They claim to care about democracy and the right to vote, yet they’ve failed to plan accordingly to facilitate the right to vote for every single one of our nation’s brave men and women in uniform. This is absolutely unacceptable. Our nation’s elite warriors deserve to have every opportunity to vote for the next commander-in-chief, especially since that person will be making life-and-death decisions for our troops.”
“Both Joe Biden & Kamala Harris have dismissed our warfighters serving in combat zones by either falsely claiming the U.S. has suffered no casualties under this administration or by claiming thousands of these service members aren’t in active combat zones,” said Rep. Waltz. “We need assurances these service members who are putting their lives on the line for our country have the information and tools they need to cast their ballot to vote.”
“It is completely unacceptable that our men and women serving overseas are not receiving the proper information and resources necessary to cast their ballot,” said Rep. Huizenga. “Sadly, this is the latest example of the Biden-Harris Administration failing to stand up for our servicemembers.”
During recent visits with active duty service members, concerns were raised about the Pentagon’s inadequate education at the administrative level on voter registration, absentee ballot requests, and the use of a federal write-in absentee ballot when state-issued ballots do not arrive in time. Some service members have even reported that requests for federal write-in absentee ballots were sometimes met with the response that the base’s stockpile of these ballots was depleted and had not been replenished.
Reps. Mast, Huizenga, and Waltz raised these concerns in a letter to Secretary Austin urging him to make every resource available to facilitate voting by American armed service members, pursuant to federal and state regulations governing elections. He also asked that Congress be made aware of what preparedness and planning initiatives the Pentagon has undertaken to facilitate voting.
CLICK HERE to view the letter the three congressmen sent to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
Rep. Mast shared a copy of their letter to X on Friday and wrote, “Joe Biden & Kamala Harris are failing to facilitate the right to vote for our men and women in uniform. I’m calling on the Pentagon to mobilize every resource necessary so our nation’s elite warriors don’t miss out on voting for the next commander-in-chief.”
Joe Biden & Kamala Harris are failing to facilitate the right to vote for our men and women in uniform.
I’m calling on the Pentagon to mobilize every resource necessary so our nation’s elite warriors don’t miss out on voting for the next commander-in-chief. pic.twitter.com/WY1BFmtWvC
— Rep. Brian Mast (@RepBrianMast) November 1, 2024
Former Rep. Allen West, the Dallas GOP Chair and a US Army veteran, reacted to the report, writing, “There are two words to describe this, disgusting and despicable. Sadly it appears the Pentagon, meaning the Biden-Harris administration views our men and women in uniform deployed are garbage and don’t deserve their right to vote.”
“The Democrat Party has no issue enfranchising illegals and non citizens to vote…but willing to disenfranchise our men and women in uniform,” West added.
The Democrat Party has no issue enfranchising illegals and non citizens to vote…but willing to disenfranchise our men and women in uniform.
— Allen West (@AllenWest) November 2, 2024
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