Voting in space

High school (ages 12+)
People & Society

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/voting-in-space

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the governing legislation (US)?Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA)
2. What is the first documented US space vote?David Wolf, 1997, from the Mir space station
3. What does it mean to vote from space?Voting from space means astronauts can choose their leaders even while they are far from Earth. They still get to send a ballot that counts just like a ballot on the ground.
4. How do astronauts send their ballots back to Earth?Astronauts send their ballots using secure electronic networks or special return channels set up by space agencies. The messages travel through space and are received by election officials on Earth.

Universal Suffrage: The right of all adult citizens to vote, regardless of wealth, race, or gender.
Extraterrestrial: Originating, existing, or occurring outside the planet Earth.
Jurisdiction: The official power to make legal decisions and judgments; the extent of this power.