Absent voting, the Help America Vote Act 2002, and the American overseas voter :an analysis of policy effectiveness and political participation

Abstract

The 2000 Presidential Election demonstrated that the rules that dictate the conduct of elections are fundamental in legitimating electoral processes and outcomes. For the United States, these election rules extend beyond borders, impacting millions of Americans resident overseas. Following the 2000 Election, a number of policy initiatives directed at improving the voting process for American overseas voters were undertaken. However the effectiveness of those policies was not clear. This thesis represents the first scholarly study assessing the effectiveness of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) and the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act of 2009 (MOVE). This assessment will show that neither HAVA nor the MOVE Act have improved the electoral participation of American overseas voters. Through a comprehensive review of the historical development of absent voting legislation in the United States, it will be shown that the events of the 2000 Election should not have been surprising to anyone. This historical review will demonstrate that problems associated with ensuring the franchise for absent voters have been recurring and highly political. In this partisan atmosphere, effective solutions to ensure the franchise of American overseas voters have not emerged. The 2000 Presidential Election also highlighted the potential impact of the political activity of Americans resident overseas on political outcomes in the continental United States. Previous research has not collected or analysed data regarding the demographics, associational involvement or the political attitudes and ideological self-identification of this group. Using data collected on a survey of American voters overseas, the thesis attempts to fill this research gap by analysing how this group relate to the United States political system from abroad and their propensity to participate.