Reagan signs Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act requiring military mail voting

President Reagan signs the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA, P.L. 99-410), requiring all states and territories to allow members of the uniformed services, their families, and U.S. citizens abroad to register and vote by absentee ballot in federal elections. UOCAVA creates the Federal Post Card Application and Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot as uniform tools. The law makes military and overseas absentee voting nationally uniform, replacing a patchwork of inconsistent state rules.