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OP-ED: Pennsylvania GOP congressmen attack sacred right of overseas military to vote

By Christopher Kowerdovich 4 min read

Risking my life to serve my country in Iraq as a combat medic was the honor of my lifetime, but it did not come without sacrifice. As a retired veteran, I carry the lasting scars of war every day. But it was worth it to protect the unalienable rights that we cherish as Americans-and voting is one of the most sacred.

That is why I am disgusted that six Pennsylvania Republican congressmen are following Donald Trump’s voter suppression playbook by filing a lawsuit against the Pennsylvania Department of State, arguing that ballots cast by Americans citizens living overseas — including deployed U.S. military members — are susceptible to fraud. As a result, these politicians claim overseas ballots should be treated differently from other ballots, segregated, and potentially rejected.

It is shocking that members of Congress – who took an oath to protect and defend our Constitution against enemies foreign and domestic – would jeopardize our armed service members’ right to vote, but it’s not surprising when you look at these politicians’ track record of putting loyalty to Trump over our country: Reps. Scott Perry (R-York) and Guy Reschenthaler (R-Washington) – both of whom are veterans – along with Reps. Lloyd Smucker (R-Lancaster), Dan Meuser (R-Luzerne), Glenn Thompson (R-Centre), and Mike Kelly (R-Butler). All of them refused to certify the 2020 election results on Trump’s behalf, and the lawyers working with them were involved in Trump’s efforts to overturn the will of voters in Pennsylvania and other states in the 2020 election.

The suggestion that our service members overseas would try to vote fraudulently is a slap in the face to thousands of personnel currently serving overseas and the 60,000 Veterans of Foreign Wars in Pennsylvania. Last year, about 2,000 Pennsylvania National Guard members deployed in support of ongoing contingency and force protection operations in Kuwait, the Horn of Africa, Romania and other locations.

The federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) ensures American citizens can exercise their constitutional right to participate in our democracy, and about 7,000 Pennsylvania servicemembers and military families overseas cast their ballots in the last election, according to a report by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Already in 2024, more than 25,000 UOCAVA ballots have been transmitted to UOCAVA applicants in Pennsylvania. Sadly, these MAGA congressmen are trying to suppress both military and non-military Pennsylvanians from exercising their constitutional right to vote on behalf of Donald Trump.

Unlike Trump, who thinks war heroes are “suckers” and “losers” and disgraces veterans’ burial grounds for his personal political gain, Vice President Kamala Harris and her veteran running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, actually respect veterans. Vice President Harris worked alongside President Biden to enact into law the Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act, the most significant expansion of benefits for toxic exposed veterans in more than 30 years. This bipartisan law, which U.S. Sen. Bob Casey fought to pass, expanded health care coverage and benefits for veterans exposed to toxic substances like Agent Orange and open-air burn pits. More than 1 million veterans and 10,000 survivors of veterans who died have begun to receive disability benefits stemming from the law, accounting for approximately $6.8 billion in earned benefits.

In contrast, all six plaintiffs in the Pennsylvania voter suppression lawsuit, Reps. Perry, Reschenthaler (again, both veterans), Smucker, Meuser, Thompson, Kelly, voted against the Honoring Our PACT Act.

Trump’s Project 2025 agenda threatens the benefits millions of veterans across the country like me rely upon. For example, it could result in decreased quality of care at or even jeopardize shutting the doors of Veterans Administraion hospitals. It would be particularly catastrophic for rural vets like me, slash disability benefits, and bar some vets from enrolling in VA health care entirely.

Trump and his compliant congressional allies have proven to the American people time and time again that their collective disgusting record of belittling America’s veterans would make him a disastrous commander-in-chief with their rubber stamp support. Now they want to suppress veterans’ votes. Veterans deserve leaders who understand and graciously appreciate all they have sacrificed for the United States, and that’s why this November, I urge my fellow veterans and military personnel to vote for Vice President Harris and Senator Casey.

Christopher Kowerdovich served as a healthcare specialist when he deployed to Iraq with the Pennsylvania National Guard. He currently serves as the Chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party’s Veterans Caucus.

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