October 29, 1997 in Nation/World

First Vote From Space

 

For the first time in history, an American astronaut is about to exercise his right to vote while in orbit. A ballot has been sent to David Wolf, above, aboard the Russian space station Mir, thanks to a new Texas law. In June, Gov. George W. Bush signed a bill saying astronauts registered to vote in Texas, where most of them live, can cast ballots from space. Using new software developed by NASA, a ballot last week was sent to U.S. flight controllers in Moscow, and they transmitted it by e-mail to Wolf 240 miles above Earth for Tuesday’s election.

Get stories like this in a free daily email


Please keep it civil. Don't post comments that are obscene, defamatory, threatening, off-topic, an infringement of copyright or an invasion of privacy. Read our forum standards and community guidelines.

You must be logged in to post comments. Please log in here or click the comment box below for options.

comments powered by Disqus