EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- With the presidential election set for November, legal aged, active-duty members and their dependents can still vote in their state of residency, regardless of where they live, through a fairly unknown act of Congress. 

Through the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, people not currently residing in their state of residency can vote by absentee ballot. 

To aid servicemembers in absentee voting, each base squadron has been assigned one or more Unit Voting Assistance Counselors who will contact servicemembers or post informational posters within their squadron on how to properly vote through the absentee ballot process. A list of UVAOs can be found on the Air Force Portal under "Bases-Orgs-Functional Areas," "My Base," "Newcomers/Base Guide," "Voting Assistance." The voting Web site has other voting related links and information. 

Counselors, as well as Installation Voting Assistance Officers, are available to help voters fill out a Federal Post Card Application. After filling out and returning the application, voters will receive post card confirmation from their state's county clerk or voter registrar confirming their absentee voting registration. 

As voting season approaches, state offices will mail absentee ballots to the voter. Voters fill out their ballots and mail them back to their state of residency. 

Military members who are scheduled to deploy and have not received an absentee ballot should see a UVAC to vote using a Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot. More information about the federal voting system and write-in ballots can be found at www.fvap.gov. 

Each voting year two weeks are set aside to assist military and absentee voters. Armed Forces Voters' Week is Aug. 31 through Sept. 7, and Absentee Voting Week is Oct. 12 through 18. During the Armed Forces Voters' Week, there will be special activities encouraging servicemembers to vote. Voters can return their ballots as soon as they are completed, but absentee ballots must be returned by the end of Absentee Voting Week. 

For more information about absentee voting, call Maj. Waikwong Kan at 277-3272 or 2nd Lt. Meo Park at 275-2539. 

(2nd Lt. Meo Park, 95th Contracting Squadron, contributed to this article)