July 4th, 2016
Celebrate democracy this 4th of July by taking the necessary steps to vote in the 2016 U.S. elections!
In order to vote in the November 2016 elections, all overseas U.S. citizens need to have completed a Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) in 2016. Whether you are a first-time voter or have already received ballots and voted absentee in past elections, you must complete an FPCA each year to participate in elections as an overseas absentee voter.
The U.S. Embassy is organizing a number of events to assist voters with registering to vote and to accept Federal Post Card Applications. The first of these events will be in Santiago on Monday, July 11 at Centro Cultural Dominico Americano. We will give a formal presentation on the overseas voting process at 10am. Consular staff will also be available to help eligible U.S. citizens complete their Federal Post Card Applications for 2016 from 8am until 12pm (noon).
The second event will be in Santo Domingo at Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE) on Thursday, July 14. The formal presentation will be at 10am, and consular staff will be available to assist eligible U.S. citizens complete their Federal Post Card Applications for 2016 in Auditorium UNIBE from 9am until 2pm. Please bring your passport or birth certificate to these events.
The Social Security Administration contacts beneficiaries with Dominican addresses yearly to verify and update their records. The Federal Benefit Unit will be present to collect the annual Foreign Enforcement Questionnaire from Social Security beneficiaries. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) representatives will also be available to address the questions and concerns of U.S. citizens and the general public.
If you can’t make it to either of these events, you can always come to the U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo or one of our Consular Agencies in Puerto Plata or Punta Cana for voting assistance and to drop off your completed voting forms and ballots, addressed to your local election officials, during regular embassy business hours.
If it’s more convenient for you, you can also return your FPCA or ballot to your local election officials via international mail or professional courier service at your own expense.
Learn more at the Federal Voting Assistance Program’s (FVAP) website, FVAP.gov. If you have any questions about registering to vote overseas, please contact Embassy Santo Domingo’s Voting Assistance Officer at (809) 567-7775, or at sdoamericans@state.gov.
Remember, your vote counts!
