The U.S. Embassy has received inquiries from some American citizens concerned that they have not received their absentee ballots for the November 2, 2004 general election. Most states mail out absentee ballots 30 to 45 days before Election Day, so you can expect to receive your absentee ballot shortly. For those registered voters who have applied for but fail to receive an absentee ballot, Federal Write-In Absentee Ballots are available at the Embassy.  

To be eligible to use the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot (FWAB), you must have sent in your absentee ballot request so that it reached local election officials at least 30 days before the election. The FWAB is an emergency ballot that can be used to vote for candidates for federal offices (President, Vice President, Senator, Representative). Eleven states have expanded the use of the FWAB for elections for other than federal offices. Those states are:  Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. For more information, refer to your state’s voting procedures in chapter III of the 2004-05 Voting Assistance Guide. It is available on line at http://fvap.gov/pubs/vag/vagchapter3.html.

The FWAB is available at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo. We urge you to complete and return the Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot immediately so that it reaches your local election officials by your state’s ballot receipt deadline. Check your state’s voting procedures for your ballot receipt deadline.

If you receive your absentee ballot from your local election officials after sending in the FWAB, you should fill it out and send it back in time to meet your state’s ballot receipt deadline. Election boards that receive both an absentee ballot and an FWAB for the same registered voter will count the absentee ballot and disregard the FWAB.

Registered voters may pick up and complete an FWAB at the American Citizen Services (ACS) office of the U.S. Embassy, located at 5 Latin America Street, Garden City, Cairo.  ACS is open to the public from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Sunday through Thursday.  Please note that the Embassy will be closed on Sunday, October 10 in observance of Columbus Day.  A consular officer from the Embassy will have FWABs available at the Cairo American College in Maadi on the evening of Monday, October 11 from 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.  The FWAB is also available for registered voters at the American Center in Alexandria.

Further information about voting can be found at http://www.fvap.gov/  and at http://www.Dnet.org.  You can also contact the American Citizen Services office of the U.S. Embassy in Cairo via e-mail on consularcairo@state.gov  or by telephone on 797-2301.