Earlier this week Carrie and I mailed in our absentee ballots for the U.S. General Election.
Since we are now expats, we were required (back in September) to go online so that we could print absentee ballot request forms that we would then complete and mail back to the State of Maryland for processing. We had requested that our ballots be emailed to us. It was either late September or early October when we had received our official ballots.
One of the questions we were asked on the absentee ballot request form was with reference to our intended re-entry back to the U.S. A 'known' date (or even an approximate time period) would have granted us the ability to vote in Maryland's State election. However, despite knowing this would limit our voting ability, we responded with an honest answer which is that we do not yet know when we will be heading back home to the U.S.
Needless to say, we are sadden by the fact that we cannot vote FOR Maryland's Question 6... which is to keep marriage equality in the State of Maryland. This is a huge issue and one that is very important to us.
For those of you who do not know this... In the State of Maryland, a bill called 'The Civil Marriage Protection Act' (which was endorsed by Maryland's Governor Martin O'Malley) was passed earlier this year. Maryland became the eighth state in the country to legalize same-sex marriage and offer the same statewide protections and benefits for same-sex couples that already exist for straight married couples. The Civil Marriage Protection Act grants same-sex couples the right to marriage, but it also protects the liberties of religious groups who oppose this, as they do not have to perform same-sex ceremonies if they prefer not to.
Maryland is one of twenty-six states that offer a referendum option to the public that allows opponents the chance to repeal a new law via a petition that then sends the law to the ballots during the next election. Citizens are the ones who get to decide whether to maintain or repeal the new law.
To date, this issue has always been voted down by the general population. It has also never been endorsed by a President... until recent. President Obama has made it clear that he supports this issue, as do many other prominent individuals. This is expected to be a close decision in Maryland and one that we can only wait to see what the Maryland citizens decide.
On another note, it is fair to say that the 'world is watching' the U.S. Presidential election. Carrie and I have already signed up for the "Who's the President?" breakfast that will be taking place here in Den Haag during the early hours on the day after the election. In addition, there is a "White House Luncheon" at our local Hilton on November 6th where there will be news updates from political experts and live connections with media correspondences back in the U.S. There is also a "USA Election Tour 2012" where one can take a Greyhound bus to various venues with activities related to the U.S. presidential elections.