Absentee Voting Week kicks off Oct. 11 Published Oct. 8, 2004 By Samantha L. Quigley American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- Oct. 11 to 15 has been designated Absentee Voting Week by the Federal Voting Assistance Program.Overseas voters should mark and return their state absentee ballots or the Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot during this week, federal voting officials said.It is imperative to mark and mail ballots as soon as they are received, they said. If a state absentee ballot has been requested but does not arrive by voting week, a Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot should be submitted. In the event the state ballot shows up after the write-in ballot is sent, it also should be marked and returned.Votes will not be counted twice, but in the event the state ballot makes it to the state by the deadline, it will generally be counted instead of the write-in because it includes nonfederal offices, according to information on the FVAP Web site.Absentee Voting Week is not the first push made to get overseas voters to participate. In early July, Overseas Citizens Voters Week began the push to get DOD people overseas to register to vote. Armed Forces Voters Week followed in early September. Again, it was a push to encourage those who had not registered and requested an absentee ballot to do so, officials said.Many changes have been made since the absentee-voting system was criticized in 2000, officials said. In that election, numerous ballots were disqualified for lack of postmarks or other reasons. One of the biggest changes made is the effort to make registering and voting as easy as possible for those voting under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizen Absentee Voting Act.Since states' requirements vary, voters should consult the FVAP Web site and check state-by-state instructions to determine submission deadlines and rules for state absentee ballots, officials said.