A NASA astronaut says the vote is crucial to democracy, so she plans to cast an absentee vote from space

• NASA astronaut Kate Robins will be in space during the next general election, but she won’t let that stop her from voting.

• “We consider it an honor to be able to vote from space, so we fill out a form and vote in the absentee ballot,” she told the Associated Press.

• Texas, where most American astronauts live, allows them to vote via secure electronic ballot, which, once completed, is sent to the state clerk by Mission Control.

• “I think it’s really important for everyone to vote, and if we can do it from space, then I think people can do it from Earth as well,” Robbins told the AP.

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NASA astronaut Kate Robins is planning to vote from space during the upcoming general election.

Robbins told the Associated Press on Friday that the astronauts cast their ballots from orbit because they “feel it’s very important”.

“It is important that we participate in our democracy,” she said. “We consider it a great honor to be able to vote from space, so we fill out a form and vote by absentee ballot, and I plan to do so in November.”

The Associated Press reported that Robins is in Star City, Russia, as it prepares to launch the International Space Station in mid-October. You will spend six months there.

The Associated Press said that most of the American astronauts live in Houston, Texas. State law allows them to use a secure electronic ballot to cast their ballots, which Mission Control sends to the county clerk, once completed.

“I think it’s really important for everyone to vote, and if we can do it from space, then I think people can do it from Earth too,” Robbins said.

Robins and fellow astronaut Shane Kembrah voted from space during the 2016 presidential election, according to the Associated Press.

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