Thousands of Americans living in Vancouver and millions around the world will have the chance to vote on-line for the Democratic nominee for president.

In the first-ever global primary election in February, members of Democrats Abroad—the international wing of the Democratic Party in the United States—will be able to cast their ballots by e-mail, fax, or snail mail, as well as at drop-in voting centres. Senators Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama will be on the ballot, as well as a few candidates who have pulled out of the race but haven’t been removed. The votes they garner will help determine 14 overseas delegates that will attend August’s Democratic National Convention in Denver, where the party’s presidential candidate will be officially selected.

A good portion of these overseas delegates will be elected in meetings in Vancouver. Democrats Abroad will hold its Americas and Asia-Pacific regional caucuses on April 11, as well as its global convention from April 12 to 13, in the city.

The global primary begins on so-called Super Tuesday (February 5), when Americans in more than 20 states will vote in their own caucuses or primaries, and wraps up February 12.

The 2006 census found 24,780 U.S.–born immigrants residing in Metro Vancouver and 250,535 in Canada. But those figures don’t include American citizens who are temporarily residing here or people born in Canada who hold dual citizenship.

Prior to this primary season, out-of-country Democrats only had the option of voting via absentee ballot in the nomination contests of the state they last resided in—or, in the case of U.S. citizens born overseas, the voting state of a parent. Now they can choose to vote in either.

Although Sean Lauer, chair of the Vancouver chapter of Democrats Abroad Canada, has already cast his absentee ballot in the New Hampshire primary, he argued that there are good reasons to vote in the global contest rather than a state poll.

“The more people who do vote from abroad, the more sort of attention it brings to the significance of the abroad vote,” Lauer, an assistant professor of sociology at UBC, told the Straight by phone on January 24. “And we do sort of have unique issues and unique concerns and stuff, so the more we can bring attention to that, the more likely they’re to be sort of addressed and considered in the party and in the platform.”

In Vancouver, U.S. citizens can join Democrats Abroad Canada and vote in person at the Wolf and Hound (3617 West Broadway) on February 5, starting at 6:30 p.m. Party members will gather at the pub at 7:30 p.m. to watch the Super Tuesday results come in. Americans can also sign up on-line and find out how to vote by e-mail, fax, and post in the primary at www.democratsabroad.org/.

Republicans Abroad isn’t holding a global primary. Prospective Republicans can find membership forms for that party at www.republicansabroad.ca/, and overseas members may cast an absentee ballot in their voting state.

U.S. citizens can register to vote in the November general election via www.votefromabroad.org/.