Obama Wins 1st Super Tuesday Votes
International Democrats Vote for Presidential Candidate Barack Obama
With 22 democratic delegates available (each possessing half a vote) USA voters, living abroad, were the first to cast ballots nearly 24 hours ahead of mainland America.
From 38 different international country groups, expatriate American Democrats in Indonesia cast 100 ballots at midnight (local time, 1700 GMT) to be the first Americans to vote on Super Tuesday. Overwhelmingly, they chose Barack Obama 75-25. ABS-CBN News reported in an Agence France Presse article from Jakarta that: “US Democratic Party voters in Indonesia…handed [Obama] a win over Hillary Clinton in the first voting abroad on ‘Super Tuesday,’ party officials said.”
However, because the voting area is so large, the final delegate breakdown will have to wait for several weeks. According to an AP report published in AOL News on February 4th 2008: “about 6 million Americans living abroad are eligible to vote in U.S. elections.” That number does not include military personnel who are counted in their home state population.
With such a large number of American citizens living abroad, the government has attempted to count these citizens. “Americans' great freedom of movement makes them probably one of the largest expatriate communities, but at the same time one of the most difficult to follow,” said Kenneth Prewitt, director of the U.S. census in 2000 and now dean of graduate studies at the New School for Social Research in New York.
Inclusion
Many citizens do partake in American activities even while living outside the USA. Democrats Abroad (DA), the overseas branch of the US Democratic Party, has made primary election participation available internationally. According to the organization “Democrats Abroad has committees throughout [the world and they]…help [Americans] participate in the U.S. political process.”
- Africa
- Antipodes
- Asia
- Europe
- Middle East
- North America
- South America
With Americans scattered over such a vast area the difficulties expressed above have been overcome by DA. The Democrats allow polls to remain open for several days: "The New Delhi Voting Center will be open for US Citizens to cast their vote in the Democratic Global Primary on February 5, 6, 9 and 12th from 4:00 - 8:00 each day," said Carolyn Sauvage, director of the New Delhi branch of Democrats Abroad.
Unlike the voting in the USA, which takes place primarily in schools, firehouses, church basements and city offices; voting overseas takes place in many more convenient locations. “Over the next week, Americans…will line up at a hotel in Australia, a pub in Ireland, and a Starbucks in Thailand…” the China Post said today. The Democratic Party has also allowed, for the first time, voting via internet for expatriate Democrats. “Anyone who is a member of Democrats Abroad by January 31st, 2008, can choose to vote by Internet…,” from Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary.
Super Tuesday
Today, the delegate rich day, began half way around the world from Washington, DC. Jakarta has attempted to create a luster similar to Dixville Notch during the New Hampshire Primary. ABS-CBN news reported: “Arian Ardie, the chairman of Democrats Abroad's Indonesia committee, said Democratic officials here tried to create a buzz similar to that surrounding the New Hampshire town of Dixville Notch.” But unlike the New Hampshire controversy, the results were not forecast in polls.
A facet of the overseas vote is that voters tend to look at events differently from mainland US. Experience has been a theme Senator Hillary Clinton has used, with some success, against Obama. “The decision between Clinton and Obama seems to be a matter of weighing Clinton's experience against Obama's charisma,” said the McCarville Report on Feb 3rd. However, a large percentage of international voters see it differently. "I'm voting for Obama because of his Indonesian background….That will make him stronger in international affairs," said Conrad Gardiner to AP reporter Robin McDowell at midnight in Jakarta.
