"Proud to Be American": Sunita Williams and Astronauts Vote from Space, Share Photos on Election Day

Washington: On U.S. Election Day, astronauts Butch Wilmore, Sunita Williams, and Don Pettit shared a photo on Instagram wearing socks in patriotic colors. Two of astronauts' socks featured mess "Proud to be American."

Texas Harris County Clerk of Court's Office reported that three astronauts cast ir early presidential ballots from International Station.

“It doesn’t matter if you are sitting, standing, or floating  - what matters is that you vote!”, American astronaut Nick Hague shared on X.

In Harris County, Texas, over 1.2 million individuals, including astronauts, cast early ballots for election.

Kw how astronauts in International Station cast ir votes

Ballots cast in are transmitted to Earth through NASA's Near Network, a network of satellites in orbit that connect to antennas on ground, similar to how most data is relayed between station and mission control. 

Voting from has been an option for American astronauts since 1997, when Texas Legislature passed a bill allowing "a person who meets eligibility requirements of a voter… but who will be on a flight during early-voting period and on election day”.