Watch Now
News

Actions

A NASA astronaut cast his absentee ballot from space

<p>The sole American outside Earth&#39;s atmosphere just one-upped your absentee ballot.</p><p>NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough was able to&nbsp;<a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/american-astronaut-shane-kimbrough-casts-his-vote-from-international-space-station/" target="_blank">make his voice heard</a>&nbsp;in the 2016 presidential election from the International Space Station.&nbsp;</p><p><b>SEE MORE: <a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/what-it-takes-to-bring-astronauts-to-and-from-the-iss/">What It Takes To Bring Astronauts To And From The ISS</a></b></p><p>Kimbrough told reporters before he launched in late October that he&#39;s &quot;pretty much apolitical.&quot; But he was excited to be able to say, &quot;I voted from space.&quot;</p><p>But he&#39;s certainly not the first American to exercise his civic duty without coming near an earthly voting booth.&nbsp;<a href="http://nasa.tumblr.com/post/152733055774/vote-while-you-float-an-astronaut-voting-story" target="_blank">According to NASA</a>, a 1997 Texas law gave astronauts the ability to vote while on missions.</p><p>One year before launch, astronauts must select which local, state and federal elections they want to participate in most live in or near Houston. Once absentee ballots are available, astronauts in space can vote using a &quot;<a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition18/vote.html" target="_blank">secure electronic ballot</a>.&quot;&nbsp;</p><p>NASA astronaut Kate Rubins sent in her absentee ballot from space before returning to Earth in late October.</p><p>&quot;The absentee ballot address is &#39;low-Earth orbit.&#39; So I think that it&#39;s pretty amazing that we&#39;re able to vote from up here, and I think it&#39;s incredibly important,&quot; Rubins&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxwHl35LhGQ" target="_blank">said in an interview</a>.</p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/november-s-supermoon-will-be-the-largest-in-almost-70-years/">November&#039;s Supermoon Will Be The Largest In Almost 70 Years</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/nasa-is-going-to-hawaii-to-train-for-mars-trips/">NASA&#039;s Going To Hawaii To Train For Martian Hunting</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/peruvian-officials-released-17-000-baby-turtles/">Peru Is Releasing Hundreds Of Thousands Of Baby Turtles Into The Wild</a></li></ul>
Posted
and last updated

The sole American outside Earth's atmosphere just one-upped your absentee ballot.

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough was able to make his voice heard in the 2016 presidential election from the International Space Station. 

Kimbrough told reporters before he launched in late October that he's "pretty much apolitical." But he was excited to be able to say, "I voted from space."

But he's certainly not the first American to exercise his civic duty without coming near an earthly voting booth. According to NASA, a 1997 Texas law gave astronauts the ability to vote while on missions.

One year before launch, astronauts must select which local, state and federal elections they want to participate in — most live in or near Houston. Once absentee ballots are available, astronauts in space can vote using a "secure electronic ballot." 

NASA astronaut Kate Rubins sent in her absentee ballot from space before returning to Earth in late October.

"The absentee ballot address is 'low-Earth orbit.' So I think that it's pretty amazing that we're able to vote from up here, and I think it's incredibly important," Rubins said in an interview.

2016 Newsy.com. All Rights Reserved.