US Election Campaign: Democrats in Ambergris Race for Votes

“Democrats Abroad” invited people to an information event in a small restaurant in the middle of the Amberg pedestrian zone. The official wing of the Democratic Party wants to encourage eligible Americans to vote in the Northern Upper Palatinate.

But the focus this evening was not on Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Members want to promote American elections in a nonpartisan manner. According to Cliff Stuhmer, many Americans don't know they can vote. The Regensburg resident is a member of “Democrats Abroad,” and through events like this she wants to show other Americans that there is help if they have trouble with their election documents.

Voting from abroad is not easy

Voting for Americans living out of state is complicated and organized differently in each state. They should register specifically in their home states and ask for voting documents to be sent to them. In most states you can vote online or by mail.

Julia Bradford was also present. The democrat is a retired teacher and lives in the Upper Palatinate. He hopes to have a woman president by the end of this year. She hopes Harris will strengthen women's rights, especially when it comes to abortion rights. In 2022, the US Supreme Court struck down the right to abortion. This topic plays an important role in the current US presidential election campaign.

40,000 Americans live in the Upper Palatinate

About 40,000 Americans currently live in the Upper Palatinate. Most of them were from US military locations in Grafenwoehr, Vilseck, and Hohenfels. As political and election campaigning in the military training area is prohibited in the military training area and military facilities, there are no party election events there.

Republicans: No visible election campaign

Georg Weinberg, a member of the “Republics Overseas” group, explains that “republicans abroad”, i.e. members of the Republican Party, do not conduct such an open election campaign in Germany compared to the Democrats. The “Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP),” the US federal program for electoral assistance, considers 2.9 million Americans overseas eligible to vote. In 2020, the average turnout was just 7.8 percent, according to FVAP's analysis. In Germany it was at least 25 percent.