VOTING ABROAD BCN
As most of the world knows, the United States will soon elect a new president. The Obama-rama fever in the USA has spread far and wide and it seems that the charismatic senator has not only won the votes of half of America but also the ‘would-be’ votes of most of Spain. More than once in the last few months Spaniards have told me, “It’s not fair; the USA affects the whole world so I want a chance to vote for the US president, too!”
Well, that’s not going to happen. Americans living abroad can vote though, and there is a huge global effort to get the vote out. This is certainly true in Barcelona, where the group Democrats Abroad hopes to lean the voting scales in favor of Obama. The Spanish chapter of Democrats Abroad was formed in 2004 and has been growing ever since, it’s main membership based in Barcelona.
Currently, the group’s biggest focus is getting students who are studying abroad in Spain and ex-pats to register to vote in November’s elections. Many inspired volunteers have signed up with the group to help reach an estimated 90,000 Americans living in Spain. Rebecca Lewis, the group’s chairwoman is originally from Chicago but has spent half her life in Spain. She believes that Americans living abroad are the country’s best ambassadors and still feels patriotic about being an American even after so many years on foreign soil. She is motivated to help get Obama in office and has planned, along with volunteers, many fundraisers, debates, meetings and parties in the last couple months supporting the Obama/Biden ticket. As the countdown continues, Democrats (and some GOPs, too) are coming out of the woodwork to vote in what is viewed as being one of the most important elections in US history.
Live abroad and want to vote? Whether you are a Dem or a Republican or neither, you can cast your vote by visiting: http://www.democratsabroad.org