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US voters abroad denied access to absentee vote site

Americans abroad, whose votes could be crucial if the Nov. 2 presidential election proves agonizingly close, are being denied access to a US Department of Defense Web site designed to make it easier for them to cast absentee ballots.

The problem concerns blocks placed on access to the Web site of the Federal Voting Assistance Program, a Defense Department division to help expatriate American voters, including members of the military. The site's address is www.fvap.gov.

In an e-mail, a Web manager at www.fvap.gov, Susan Leader, said access is being refused to some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that were used by hackers to attack US government sites.

"There has been a marked increase in Web attacks on government computers, more as we get closer to the election. As a result, many ISPs have been blocked from accessing our site," Leader wrote. "Due to security concerns we cannot unblock these ISPs."

Brett Rierson, a Hong Kong-based Democrat who wrote to Leader about the problem, provided reporters with a copy of her e-mail. Rierson says he has tracked complaints from users of at least 27 ISPs in 25 countries who have been denied access to the Pentagon-run site.

He fears that US citizens may be unable to vote if they can't download absentee ballot forms from www.fvap.gov or another site, www.overseasvote.com, which he co-founded, or collect the forms in person.

"It has the potential to disenfranchise anyone who does not live next to a US Embassy," Rierson said in a telephone interview. He noted that the Democratic Party has set up the site www.overseasvote2004.com, where even people using blocked ISPs can register.
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