If you plan to vote in the November 2020 election it is important to ACT NOW! Don’t wait; return your voted ballot right away! The U.S. Embassy can help you mail your postage paid ballot back to the United States. Remember U.S. embassies and consulates are not polling places; same-day in-person voting is not available outside the United States. Many states require voted ballots to reach local election officials by Tuesday, November 3. Please check the regulations in the state in which you vote as deadlines may differ, and you may have alternative voting options such as electronic voting or by fax. You can find state by state guides at www.fvap.gov/guide .
The U.S. Embassy in Chisinau is here to help. We will be sending ballots back to the United States via express courier service to help these last ballots arrive in time. Bring us your completed, sealed ballot with its postage paid label or sufficient postage to go from Virginia to your polling center. Ballots will be postmarked by the embassy on the day received. Ballots received by Monday October 19 will go out that day. The last courier shipment will go out on Monday October 26. After that time we will only be able to return ballots by diplomatic pouch, a process that can take several weeks.
Never received your ballot? If you registered to vote and requested an absentee ballot prior to your state’s registration deadline, but have not yet received your ballot, complete and return a Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot to ensure your vote reaches election officials by your state’s deadline. If your regular ballot arrives later, you can complete and return it as well. Your Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot will only be counted if your regular ballot does not reach local election officials by your state’s deadline. Your vote will not be counted twice.
For general overseas voting information please see the Department of State’s web site Absentee Voting Information for U.S. Citizens Abroad or FVAP.gov.
The Department of State is committed to assisting overseas voters in casting their ballots. For more instructions on how to vote from Moldova please see our website: https://md.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/voting/.
Will your ballot not be ready by October 26? Consider returning your ballot to the United States via a commercial express courier service such as FedEx, UPS, or DHL or return your voted ballot electronically if allowed by your state. Ballots sent to local election officials via express courier service do not receive standard postmarks, so voters using this method should confirm delivery on or before November 3 prior to payment and shipment. Check your state’s voting procedures at www.FVAP.gov for guidance.
Returning your Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot by email or fax. Review your state’s voting procedures at www.FVAP.gov carefully for guidance.
HELP SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT OVERSEAS VOTING. Please help spread the word to your friends, family, and colleagues that now is the time to start thinking about overseas voting. Consider posting to your social media account that you are an active voter and will be dropping off or mailing your completed ballot. Use #ProudOverseasVoter to help get the word out about voting.
Need help or have questions? You can get in-person assistance from our Embassy Voting Assistance Officer. Email us at VoteChisinau@state.gov with any questions or call during Embassy business hours at +373 22 40 8300 and ask for the Consular Section.
You can also contact the Federal Voting Assistance Program directly if you encounter issues with local election officials by emailing Vote@FVAP.gov or toll free by phone from many countries around the world.
