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As Nov. 3 approaches, calls by President Donald Trump to declare a winner on Election Day have raised fears among the biggest, oldest group of mail-in voters: members of the military. A new nonpartisan group of retired US generals and veterans has come forward to say that could disenfranchise the 172,000 active-duty service members abroad and their families. As The World’s Rupa Shenoy reports, they call the effort “Count Every Hero.”

A group led by retired high-ranking military leaders has issued a clarion call to resist efforts to declare election winners until all military absentee ballots are counted, citing the impact these votes could have on the 2020 election.

A new study, titled ‘Military Voting in 50 States’ and published by Count Every Hero, which describes itself as “a cross-partisan campaign to ensure all service members’ votes are counted before election winners are declared”, has found that military ballots including those sent by personnel stationed overseas, could have “substantial electoral implications.”

“We have reason to believe many of those votes won’t be counted this election. That’s why I signed on to support Count Every Hero, a cross-partisan campaign to ensure all service members’ votes are counted before election winners are declared. In order for our votes to count this year, the public has to be prepared for election results to be delayed, and all candidates, media, election administrators, elected officials, and the courts should commit to waiting for the final count. This does not indicate fraud — slowing down to get it right ensures the safety and integrity of our elections.” An op-ed by Lynne Blankenbeker, an accomplished combat nurse. For more than 34 years, she has dedicated herself to caring for members of the military, veterans, and their families. This year, she ran for the U.S. House of Representatives for New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District.

“…And, the group of citizens that our society trusts the most—military members and veterans—are depending on you to ensure our votes are counted. The reality is, though our armed service members dedicate their lives to honoring and serving our country, at large they have an extremely difficult time casting ballots and often must cast their ballots through the mail.” – An op-ed by Marjorie K. Eastman, a former resident of San Diego. She is a U.S. Army veteran and award-winning author of The Frontline Generation.

Chaired by retired Marine Corps Gen. Anthony Zinni, Count Every Hero is promoting efforts to educate troops on registering to vote and requesting absentee ballots, regardless of duty station. “We count on our troops to fight for our freedom, so we owe it to them to count their ballots. No candidate should be declared an election winner until all military ballots are counted,” Zinni said.

Anthony Zinni, a retired Marine Corps general, now works with an organization called Count Every Hero, which is dedicated to helping service members abroad vote and works to ensure their votes are counted back in the US. While in the Marine Corps, Zinni voted from Germany, Japan and while deployed in Vietnam. “We started teaching our Marines about what the Constitution is all about. If you’re going to defend it, you should understand it and know what it is, and the rights you are protecting, our citizens, our way of life,” Zinni said. “We want them to understand that the rights they are protecting, they should engage in and take advantage of, so part of it’s an education.”

A bipartisan campaign to ensure U.S. service members’ votes are counted launched Tuesday. Count Every Hero said in a statement released exclusively to The Hill that it is committed to protecting service members’ votes, as well as providing them with the opportunity to register, request an absentee ballot and cast a vote no matter where they are located in the world. The effort is chaired by Ret. Gen. Anthony Zinni, who served as a special U.S. envoy to the Palestinian Authority during the Bush administration.

The unprecedented nature of the November election has led dozens of distinguished service members and veterans to support Count Every Hero, a cross-partisan public education. The aim of the group’s advertising and outreach efforts is to ensure all service members’ votes are counted before election winners are declared by candidates, election officials, and media outlets.

Count Every Hero, a cross-partisan campaign to ensure all service members’ votes are counted before election winners are declared, launched today with support across partisan lines.