"George W. Bush is not the right man for the job and that's why I'm paying to get on a plane to make sure I get over and vote," said B. Carter Looney, 39, a U.S. businessman who lives near Frankfurt.
story.news.yahoo.com
Determined to make sure their voices count, some American expatriates who missed registration deadlines or are worried about the reliability of absentee ballots are flying home next week just to vote.
Paying up to $1,300 for transatlantic journeys to states as far away as Arizona, at least five Americans in Europe believe Tuesday's presidential election is so important, and so close, that their votes are worth the expense and effort.
About six million expatriates are eligible but a complicated maze of different rules in each of the 50 states, delays in obtaining absentee ballots and concerns about the mail have left many who are eager to vote still nervously waiting for ballots.
While some are making frantic calls to state voting offices or groups representing overseas Democrats or Republicans, others have decided the only solution is to fly to the United States.
George W. Bush is not the right man for the job and that's why I'm paying to get on a plane to make sure I get over and vote," said B. Carter Looney, 39, a U.S. businessman who lives near Frankfurt.
"There's more to the world than just the United States," said Looney, who will spend 26 hours airborne for just three days in Arizona before returning Tuesday after voting.
Looney, overseas for 17 years, voted in every contest before 2000, but said he felt ill for a long time after missing the last election because his absentee ballot arrived too late.
"I vowed it wouldn't happen again," he said. |
