Technology Could Help Young Soldiers Vote from Overseas

An interesting possibility came out of the Great American Hackathon, a gathering of computer software developers "to develop open source applications for open government."

In order to vote in United States elections from their residence abroad, military members face a complex and frustrating process. In order to have their vote counted, they count on bureaucracy to properly deliver their ballot and do so promptly. Meanwhile, the soldier must stay informed of changes in local election law that could threaten their vote.

In a fabulous use of the Voting Information Project, developers are planning the release of a widget that would fuse date from the project with the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot, creating a customized ballot for the soldier's home location.

This would be a shot in the arm to youth organizing, given the youth's heavy presence in combat forces staged overseas. This is a great example of using technology to extend democracy. Kudos to these developers.