NASA astronaut plans to vote from space: ‘I think it’s really important’

NASA astronaut Kate Rubins says she plans to vote from space in the upcoming November elections. 

Rubins is currently in Star City, Russia, preparing for a mid-October launch to the International Space Station, The Associated Press reported on Friday.

She told the news wire that many astronauts “feel that it’s very important” to cast their ballots, even from orbit 

“It’s critical to participate in our democracy. We consider it an honor to be able to vote from space, and so we fill out a form and we vote via absentee ballot, and I plan on doing that in November,” Rubins said.

“I think it’s really important for everybody to vote, and if we can do it from space, then I believe folks can do it from the ground too,” she continued.

Most astronauts have a residence in Houston, according to the AP, and Texas law allows them to vote in space using a secure electronic ballot. 

Rubins and fellow astronaut Shane Kimbrough also cast their ballots in the 2016 presidential election from space.

While Rubins is in space this year, she will conduct research under the space station’s Cold Atom Lab and work on cardiovascular research.