Americans living abroad often find themselves trapped in a unique sort of political limbo, feeling as though they are relegated to the sidelines of their native land while major historical shifts unfold thousands of miles away. With one of the most contentious midterm elections in United States history rapidly approaching next month, the stakes could hardly be higher. To understand how this distance impacts civic duty, we spoke with members of the vibrant American community across the Netherlands about how they are organizing, the distinct hurdles they face while trying to cast a ballot from across the Atlantic, and the widespread anxiety surrounding the future of American democracy.
For the past two years, the global political landscape has been heavily dominated by the turbulent news cycles surrounding Donald Trump. It often feels as though there is very little within or well beyond US borders that the divisive president and his administration have left untouched or undisrupted. As the November 3 midterm elections draw closer, there is a palpable sense that the entire country—and indeed much of the democratic world—is holding its breath. There is simply no denying that a massive amount is riding on these legislative races, and the final outcome is widely expected to have a defining, long-term impact on the trajectory of global politics over the coming years.
Yet, as has been the case with countless elections of the past, Americans residing in the Netherlands frequently grapple with a sense of isolation, believing that the sum of their political power is limited to dropping an absentee ballot into the mail. Even that modest act, however, is notoriously complicated. Many expatriates ultimately fail to complete the process due to a maze of bureaucratic requirements.
Every single US state sets its own distinct deadlines and determines its own rules regarding whether ballots can be returned by email, fax, or physical post. For those utilizing traditional mail from the Netherlands, a completed ballot must successfully navigate international transit, cross the vast expanse of the Atlantic Ocean, and arrive at local election offices in time to be officially counted.
The friction inherent in this system causes some expatriates to abandon the effort entirely, while others harbor philosophical doubts about whether they should participate at all.
"One of the reasons why many in the Netherlands don’t vote is because they’ve been here for a very long time," explained Tre’ Shawn Griffin-Noordermeer, the vice chair of the Netherlands chapter of Democrats Abroad. "They feel like they shouldn’t be voting because they’ve lived outside the US for so long."
Despite these lingering hesitations, federal law explicitly grants US citizens living abroad the perpetual right to continue voting in federal elections within the state where they last maintained residency, no matter how many years or decades have elapsed since they left.
To help combat misinformation and ensure that eligible voters understand their legal rights, various political and advocacy groups throughout the Netherlands have ramped up their volunteer efforts, organizing community events, informational sessions, and social gatherings in the crucial weeks leading up to the midterms.
Reaching out to voters
In the Dutch capital and beyond, members of the campaign group Democrats Abroad have spent recent weeks orchestrating intensive outreach initiatives. These have included targeted email campaigns alongside virtual "Vote From Abroad" gatherings hosted via Zoom to guide confused voters through the registration and ballot-request process.
Alongside digital campaigns, volunteers have organized casual lunches and public events in cities across the country to foster open discussions about the high-stakes midterms. These grassroots efforts have been bolstered by traditional awareness tactics, including the distribution of informational fliers, widespread promotion on social media platforms, and large-scale phone banking operations.
"We’ve got hundreds of volunteers here in the Netherlands who have been helping with this," Griffin-Noordermeer told Dutch News, highlighting the sheer scale of the local mobilization. "A few weekends ago, we called over 13,000 people."
Originally established in 1964, Democrats Abroad functions as the official overseas arm of the Democratic Party for American citizens living abroad. One of its core mandates is encouraging its distributed membership—spread across a staggering 197 countries worldwide—to ensure their voices are heard at the ballot box.
However, executing that mission is considerably more challenging than it might appear on the surface.
Counting the voters
Obtaining an accurate picture of the electorate is nearly impossible, as no definitive count exists for the exact number of Americans living in the Netherlands who are eligible to vote. The United States government does not mandate that citizens formally register with federal authorities when they relocate abroad. Furthermore, individual states frequently purge overseas voters from their active registration rolls if they fail to respond to routine election mail. Consequently, neither the State Department nor official voter rolls maintain a reliable census of the diaspora.
Official data from the Dutch national statistics office, CBS, indicated that the population of US nationals residing in the Netherlands stood at just over 27,000. However, that figure does not paint a complete picture: many individuals within that group are minors below voting age, and dual Dutch-American citizens holding both passports are officially categorized as Dutch in national statistics, meaning they are excluded from the total.
On a global scale, the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP)—the Department of Defense office specifically tasked with assisting military personnel and overseas citizens with the voting process—estimates that approximately 2.2 million Americans of voting age currently live abroad. According to FVAP reports, a mere 11% of those eligible overseas voters participated in the previous presidential election, and historically, voter turnout drops to even lower levels during midterm election cycles. While participation rates vary slightly by region, FVAP data indicates that only 14.8% of eligible voters across the European continent managed to cast a ballot in the last presidential election.
Preparing for the worst
Even with the backdrop of low approval ratings for Donald Trump and his administration, the pathway toward a decisive legislative triumph—often referred to by Democrats as a "blue wave"—remains fraught with obstacles.
Compounding these political hurdles, the administration has continued to introduce measures that critics argue actively meddle with the midterm process. In August, the Pentagon—which oversees the operations of the FVAP—enacted last-minute alterations to the Federal Post Card Application, the standardized form utilized by overseas citizens to register and request absentee ballots. Most notably, the modification removed a key checkbox designated specifically for US citizens who were born abroad and have never established physical residency within the United States. In response to the change, the Democratic National Committee swiftly initiated legal action.
That controversial administrative move followed closely on the heels of an executive order issued in March, through which the administration attempted to institute strict proof-of-citizenship requirements for the very same voting forms—provisions that have since faced targeted blocks by federal courts. The executive order also sought to bar states from counting mail-in ballots that arrive after the official close of Election Day.
The legal battles eventually reached the highest court in the nation. In June, the US Supreme Court issued a 5-4 ruling establishing that individual states retain the authority to continue counting ballots that were properly postmarked by Election Day even if they arrive at election offices days later. For expatriate voters whose ballots must traverse international postal networks, that judicial decision proved vital.
Despite such legal safeguards, anxiety remains high among grassroots organizers. Hayley Hughes, co-founder of the Netherlands chapter of the progressive activist network Indivisible, admitted she harbors deep concerns about how the electoral process will ultimately unfold.
Hughes has already engaged in strategic discussions with leaders of other regional chapters to map out emergency responses should the administration attempt to interfere with the tabulation of votes or deploy government agents to monitor polling stations.
Such fears are not entirely unfounded; Trump has publicly suggested that Republicans should seek to "take over the voting" operations in at least 15 distinct locations across the country, while former adviser Steve Bannon openly welcomed the idea of deploying immigration enforcement agents to polling places.
"We’re already thinking we might have to mobilise," Hughes told Dutch News, outlining the potential escalation of grassroots resistance. "We’re looking at a protest here that week, if needed. In the US, there could be a mass mobilisation of peaceful protests and a general strike where people don’t go to work or school. We all hope that won’t be needed."
The week of the midterms
As tension reaches a fever pitch, a series of public events and watch parties have been organized throughout the Netherlands for the momentous week of the elections. In The Hague, the Atlantische Commissie has scheduled an "American midterm election breakfast" for the morning of November 4, offering political analysts and interested observers a space to dissect the early returns.
In Amsterdam, the commission is collaborating with the John Adams Institute to present "Midterm Madness" on November 6. Designed as a festival-style post-election experience, the event will combine live musical performances with in-depth lectures and panel discussions dissecting the election results, featuring prominent guests such as Mark Leibovich, a staff writer at The Atlantic.
Meanwhile, veteran comedian Greg Shapiro is once again partnering with fellow performer Pep Rosenfeld to host their renowned Election Night Party at the Amsterdam comedy club Boom Chicago. Having hosted similar late-night gatherings since the 2000s, the organizers are fully prepared for another marathon evening. The comedy venue has formally pledged to keep its doors open well past 4:00 AM "if things get crazy."
"How late, well, we’ll wait and see," Shapiro told Dutch News, balancing his comedic commitments with the gravity of the political moment. "I’ve got performances the next day. At some point I’ll have to get some sleep."
Shapiro will temporarily pause his ongoing comedy tour—aptly titled "KING ME: 250 Years of Donald Trump"—to anchor the Boom Chicago gathering. He noted that he is already bracing himself for the massive amount of material he will likely need to rewrite for subsequent shows once the dust settles from the midterms.
"There’s no telling what could happen," he reflected. "It could become January 6th on a national scale."
For any American citizens currently residing overseas who have not yet cast their ballots, time may still remain depending on the specific regulations of their home state. Further guidance and voter assistance resources can be found by visiting votefromabroad.org.
