Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore plan to vote in 2024 US election from space
Stranded on the International Space Station through February, NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore plan to vote in the November 5 US presidential election from space.
“It’s a very important duty that we have as citizens and (I am) looking forward to being able to vote from space, which is pretty cool,”
Williams, who is of Indian origin, said on a call with reporters on Friday afternoon.
Williams, 58, and Wilmore, 61, participated in a press conference on Friday from the International Space Station (ISS), which has been their home since June.
Their Boeing Starliner spacecraft ran into several problems midflight and could not bring them home from a planned 8-day voyage. “I sent down my request for a ballot today,” Wilmore said.
“It’s a very important role that we play as citizens including those elections, and NASA makes it very easy for us to do that,” he said.
They, however, did not indicate which presidential candidate — either former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris — would get their vote.
American astronauts have been voting from space since 1997 when the Texas legislature passed a bill allowing NASA employees to vote from space, New York Post reported.
That year, NASA astronaut David Wolf became the first American to vote from space on the Mir Space Station.
In 2020, NASA astronaut Kate Rubins also performed her civic duty from space on the ISS.
Election officials in Harris County, Texas — where NASA’s Johnson Space Station is located — told NBC News that they work with NASA to send astronauts a PDF with clickable boxes to make their choices. The PDF is password-protected to ensure a secret ballot.
Friday’s press conference came exactly one week after the Starliner returned to Earth — without its crew — to make room on the space station for SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which is now due to bring the two astronauts home in February. Williams and Wilmore are living on the ISS with seven other astronauts.
They said they feel “grateful” to spend more time in space, despite difficulties. When asked if it was difficult to see the Starliner leave without them, William said they were tasked with ensuring it left the ISS safely.
“We were watching our spaceship fly away,” she said.
Williams said as she and Wilmore used to work in the Navy, they are “not surprised when deployments get changed”.
“It’s risky and that’s how it goes in the business,” she said.
When asked if they feel let down by NASA and Boeing, Butch said, “Absolutely not.” Pointing to William’s t-shirt with a NASA logo, he said: “That represents something that we stand for as an agency – we go beyond, we do things that are out of the ordinary.” “This is not easy,” he added.
He said that 90 per cent of their astronaut training is about preparing for “the unexpected”. Williams, who has just been named the commander of the International Space Station, said she was in good spirits. “We’re here with our friends, we’ve got a ride home,” she said, adding that she is looking forward to the next couple of months on board the ISS.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
