October 7, 2020
If you plan to vote in the November 2020 election, it is important to ACT NOW! Don’t wait, return your ballot right away!
Remember U.S. embassies and consulates are not polling places; same-day in-person voting is not available outside the United States – but you can get assistance in requesting and returning your absentee ballot. Many states require voted ballots to reach local election officials by the close of polls on Tuesday, November 3.
RETURNING YOUR BALLOT:
Note that the U.S. Postal Service recommends voters mail their completed ballots before Election Day and at least one week prior to your state’s deadline. Ideally, ballots should have been dropped off at the Embassy by October 2, 2020 to allow sufficient processing time between Department of State and U.S. Postal Service systems. Ballots received after that date will still be forwarded. However, we strongly recommend you drop off your ballot as soon as possible.
If you wish to drop off your ballot or have a friend or colleague drop it off for you, place it in either a U.S. postage-paid envelope (provided with the ballot) or an envelope bearing domestic U.S. postage addressed to your local election officials and bring it to the American Citizens Services unit by the Consular entrance of U.S. Embassy Kyiv. Location: 4 A. I. Sikorsky St. Time: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. excluding Ukrainian and U.S. holidays.
While the U.S. government provides for the transport of ballots from Ukraine to the postal sorting center in the United States, you, the voter, are responsible for postage within the United States from the sorting center to your election authority. Ballots must be placed in postage paid return envelopes or in envelopes bearing sufficient U.S. domestic postage so they may be delivered to the proper local election authorities once received by the U.S. sorting facility. Submitted ballots can be sealed.
MISSED THE U.S. EMBASSY SHIPMENT DEADLINE? Here are some alternative methods of returning your ballot:
1. 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.
2. Alternatively, in some cases, you may return your Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot by email or fax. Review your state’s voting procedures at www.FVAP.gov carefully for guidance.
3. Return your ballot by international mail delivery. If using Ukraine’s postal system, be sure to affix sufficient international postage and allow sufficient time for international mail delivery. Ballots sent via regular international mail from most countries at this late date are unlikely to reach local election officials by state ballot receipt deadlines, so you may need to consider another method.
The Department of State is committed to assisting overseas voters in casting their ballots. For instructions on how to vote from Ukraine, please see our website: https://ua.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/voting/. For general overseas voting information please see the Department of State’s website Absentee Voting Information for U.S. Citizens Abroad or FVAP.gov.
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, 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.
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 Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or other social media account that you are an active voter and will be dropping off or mailing your Federal Post Card Application or completed ballot. Use #ProudOverseasVoter to help get the word out about voting.
HAVE QUESTIONS? Please contact U.S. Embassy Kyiv’s Voting Assistance Officer at 044-521-5000, or VoteKyiv@state.gov. 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.
CONFIRM YOUR REGISTRATION AND BALLOT DELIVERY ONLINE. Learn more at the Federal Voting Assistance Program’s (FVAP) website at www.FVAP.gov.
