Election Day worry: 'Does my vote count?'

A reader in Miami asks about her absentee ballot. “I am a registered Republican, and I will be out of the state on Election Day. Can I get an absentee ballot to vote Democrat?”
According to Jennifer Krell Davis of the Florida Department of State, Florida voters have until October 29 to request a mailed absentee ballot. Everyone will get the same ballot for the Nov. 4 election. The party ballots are only for the primary elections.

To our surprise, some readers still seem to be under the illusion that voting in a party’s presidential primary somehow determines or limits how they vote for a presidential candidate on Nov. 4.

Let’s be clear: If you voted in your state’s presidential primary for a Democratic candidate, you are not required to vote for Democratic candidate Obama in the Nov. 4 election. Likewise for Republican primary voters: If you voted in the GOP primary in your state, you aren’t required to vote for John McCain on Nov. 4.

You can vote for any presidential candidate you wish.

Do the other parties, other than the Democratic and Republican parties, have electors in the Electoral College as well?
Yes, the other parties such as the Green Party do have slates of presidential electors on the ballot in the states where they are qualified to be on the ballot.

Election A to Z questions What questions do you have about how America elects its president? Click here to e-mail your questions to Tom Curry and we’ll answer the best of them each week.

If the Libertarian presidential candidate, Bob Barr, were to win more popular votes in California, for instance, than any of the other candidates, then he would get the electoral votes of the state’s 55 Libertarian electors. You can find a list of those 55 electors here.

In the event of a 269-269 electoral vote tie, assuming each state’s congressional delegation remains as it is today, how many states’ delegations are majority Republican, how many are Democratic and how many are evenly split between the parties?
It is the new House, which takes office on Jan. 3, 2009 which would decide who would be president in the event of an electoral vote tie.

The Twelfth Amendment to the Constitution sets the rules: “The votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one vote.”

In the current (outgoing) Congress, Democrats control 27 state delegations, while Republicans control 21. Two are evenly split between the two parties.

It seems likely that Democrats will gain seats in the House on Nov. 4.

So the control of state delegations in the new House next January might be even more tilted to the Democrats.

McCain concedes, urges unity with Obama McCain joins Fey to joke on 'SNL' John McCain still has a shot Subscribe to McCain headlines -

Obama elected 44th president Obama campaign head gets big book deal Tears of joy, dancing in streets over Obama win Subscribe to Obama headlines -

MORE FROM

Section Front

Obama campaign head gets big book deal Officials turn down Franken request Joe the Plumber to become war correspondent Franken lead at 49 with absentees left to count Minn. Senate winner won't be known in 2008 First Read: 'Twas the seventh week of recount... Franken opens first lead in Minn. Senate race Mom of Palin daughter's boyfriend arrested Minn. court weighs rejected absentee ballots Minnesota panel reviews disputed ballots Section Front   Add headlines to your news reader: