KUWAIT: US Ambassador to Kuwait Lawrence Silverman casts his vote at the US Embassy yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Zayyat

KUWAIT: US Ambassador to Kuwait Lawrence Silverman yesterday led US citizens in Kuwait in casting ballots for the US midterm election. The election is slated for Nov 6, but overseas Americans can cast their votes until mid-October to allow for the delivery of the ballots to their respective states, cities and counties. The 'open house vote' lasted for four hours. US citizens who were unable to cast their ballots during the open house may still vote, provided they register and visit the FVAP.gov website. US citizens can also drop off their voter registrations and ballots at the embassy if they cannot send them by courier.

"We are here today to welcome US citizens - American voters - to cast their ballots for the midterm election. Americans all over the world, wherever they are, can vote for the person they trust to lead and be their senators, members of Congress, etc. The right to vote is similar to the right of every citizen to be heard, and we want to ensure that no American misses this opportunity to vote," Silverman told local reporters covering the event yesterday at the embassy.

There are around 45,000 US citizens in Kuwait, a majority of them US military personnel. "A majority of US citizens here are from the US military services, and the defense department has its ways to accommodate voting. But if they want to vote here, we welcome them," he said. Voting began at noon and ended at 4 pm.

By Ben Garcia