Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Are you registered to vote in the U.S. elections? Don't be so sure until you check. The Senate of the United States is clearly up for contention in these midterm elections. Therefore, it is essential that you make your vote count.

If you are a U.S. citizen and want to vote in the U.S. 2014 elections, and you voted in the 2012 U.S. elections from Mexico or elsewhere abroad, go to canivote.org and determine if you need to re-register. Then go to votefromabroad.org and make sure that you will get your ballot in time to vote.

If you have never voted in the U.S. elections from Mexico, or your state requires you to re-register for every federal election, go to: votefromabroad.org, and follow the simple instructions for filling out the FPCA (federal post card application, i.e. your registration application) and the FWAB (federal write-in absentee ballot, in case your ballot does not arrive in time). We recommend requesting both the FPCA and FWAB at the same time. Once you've filled out your applications, follow the instructions for sending them back to the registrar in the county you last voted in.

Be an Absentee Voter, Not an Absentee Citizen - VOTE! This slogan has particular significance to the large community of American ex-pats and dual citizens who live throughout Mexico. In Puerto Vallarta, Democrats Abroad can help you.

On Thursday, September 11th, and Thursday, September 18th from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, the Democrats Abroad Mexico Costa Banderas Chapter will have voter assistance volunteers on hand at the International Friendship Club, located at Edificio Parian del Puente #13 on Calle Libertad and the Corner of Miramar in downtown Puerto Vallarta.

For those who do not have a mail service address (the Mexican mail service can be spotty and we want your vote to count,) we can help. For those who hate computers and find it all too confusing, we can help. For those who simply don't want to spend their modest income on the postage, we can help. Be an absentee voter, not an absentee citizen.

Information provided by Democrats Abroad Mexico - Costa Banderas Chapter.