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The three American astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) exercised their right to vote this Tuesday from space in the midterm elections in the United States, reported astronaut Anil Menon.
"Yes, you can even vote from space! The three U.S. crew members had the privilege of voting from the space station. We completed an electronic ballot and sent it securely to election officials," said Menon on social media.
The astronaut posted a video in which he explained that he voted electronically with his computer from his room, "which also doubles as a polling booth."
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Menon, who is part of the Russian Soyuz MS-29 mission, arrived at the orbital laboratory on July 14, and appeared in the video with a pin attached to his clothing with the slogan "I voted."
The other two American astronauts currently at the International Space Station are Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, both crew members of the SpaceX Crew-13 personnel rotation mission, which left Earth on October 1.
NASA allows this remote voting through the Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program, so that astronauts can fulfill their civic duty from orbit.
Astronauts can vote in these elections, just like any other American citizen, thanks to absentee or early ballots, in coordination with the county clerk's office where they are registered, according to NASA.
The cast ballots travel through the network that the space agency uses for its regular communications with the astronauts, until NASA transfers the ballot to the county clerk responsible for the vote.
"To preserve the integrity of the vote, the ballot is encrypted and only the astronaut and the clerk have access to it," the U.S. space agency clarifies.
This Tuesday, voters are renewing all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 in the Senate, in addition to electing governors in 36 states, among other state and local offices in the United States.
The results will define control of Congress for the last two years of U.S. President Donald Trump's second term. EFE
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