HELADA is part of the fight to make sure every American citizen living overseas exercises the right to vote in U.S. federal elections. 

If you are a U.S. citizen 18 years or older, even if you have never lived in the United States, you are probably still eligible to vote. 

It is the individual responsibility of every citizen to register.  Registration is not automatic.

Elections in the U.S. are conducted by county governments.  Normally, you must mail a standardized registration post-card to the registrar of voters in the last U.S. county  you (or your parents) lived in (or were registered to vote in) before moving overseas. Most counties are competent and honest, but a few are not.  All are bound by federal voting rights laws as well as state law.  

It is vital that you take the initiative and register to vote!  We recommend the Overseas Vote Foundation website for a fast, simple process to generate a registration card to mail to the correct county official. 

Next, be sure you are registered in the Democrats Abroad Greece database.  For more information contact Beth Tate Hondros at dpca_gr @ yahoo.com. As Chair of Democrats Abroad Greece, Beth is your "official" liaison with the U.S. Embassy on voting rights issues.  

Don't hesitate to call the U.S. Embassy voting rights officer in the American Services Section at 210-7202421 or 210-7202423. Notarial hours are from 9.00a.m. to 2.00p.m. Monday through Friday (except on American and Greek holidays).

In the 2004 Presidential Election, many overseas Americans found absentee voting complicated and frustrating enough to conclude the incompetence was deliberate.  The opinion polls showed that Americans with passports (i.e., with some experience of the world outside America's borders) would vote overwhelmingly for John Kerry. The U.S. government's official FVAP overseas voting website was inaccessible to some, confusing to most.  Many U.S. localities were inefficient in responding to registration requests; and incorrect or incomplete information given by some US Embassies. 

If you have difficulty registering to vote or you need more information, please email Harolynne Bobis at harolynne  @ yahoo.com, who will provide moral support and good practical advice.