Republican Lawmakers Blast Pentagon for Failing to Send Absentee Ballots to Active Military Service Members in Time For Election

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The Pentagon is under fire by lawmakers after military service members complained they haven’t received enough absentee ballots to vote before Election Day.

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GOP Reps. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.), and Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Friday citing their “grave concern over deficiencies in the Defense Department’s protocols” for the U.S. military because they said the absentee ballot stockpile has been “depleted and had not been replenished.”

“Our nation’s brave men and women in uniform brought to our attention, there has been inadequate education at the administrative level on how to register to vote, request an absentee ballot, and fill in a federal write-in absentee ballot, if their state-issued ballot does not arrive in time,” the letter reads.

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“Other service members also stated, when a request for a federal write-in absentee ballot was made, they were told the base’s stockpile of such ballots was depleted and had not been replenished.”

They Reps also excoriated the Pentagon for offering “inadequate education” on how service members can vote while deployed.

Rep. Mast additionally blasted the Biden-Harris administration over its hypocrisy of espousing the importance of democracy, and the right to vote, while also failing to account for U.S. military service members overseas who have so far been denied their voting rights.

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“Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have mobilized federal manpower, resources, and tax dollars to block state-level election integrity measures, including in Georgia and Virginia, through lawsuits and smears,” Mast said in a press release.

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“They claim to care about democracy and the right to vote, yet they’ve failed to plan accordingly to facilitate the right to vote for every single one of our nation’s brave men and women in uniform.

Our nation’s elite warriors deserve to have every opportunity to vote for the next commander-in-chief, especially since that person will be making life-and-death decisions for our troops.” 

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Rep. Huizenga added, “It is completely unacceptable that our men and women serving overseas are not receiving the proper information and resources necessary to cast their ballot.

Sadly, this is the latest example of the Biden-Harris Administration failing to stand up for our servicemembers.”  

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Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) followed up with a letter to Austin on Sunday demanding answers for why overseas military service members still haven’t received absentee ballots with just two days left to go until Election Day.

“Our military puts EVERYTHING on the line for us, but their right to vote is being ignored.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd, why are federal write-in ballots not reaching our troops overseas?

This is unacceptable. We demand answers and action NOW to ensure they can vote. No more excuses,” she wrote.

This comes after Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris denied that U.S. military members are even serving overseas in combat.

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During her debate against former President Donald Trump in September, Harris claimed, no active service members were deployed on the battlefield. 

The question remains, why are absentee ballot stockpiles depleted in the first place?

Perhaps it has something to do with the longstanding fact that military veterans tend to affiliate with the Republican Party and support Republican candidates.

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Who has control of these ballots?

Who is not mailing enough ballots to our military in uniform?

Who is obstructing justice and the right to vote?