Democracy from Orbit: NASA Astronauts Vote from Space in US Midterms
Public Lokpal
November 04, 2026
Democracy from Orbit: NASA Astronauts Vote from Space in US Midterms
Orbiting over 400 kilometers (250 miles) above Earth, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and two of his American crewmates, Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, successfully cast their ballots in the 2026 U.S. Midterm Elections from the International Space Station (ISS).
Menon shared a video on X (formerly Twitter) showcasing how his compact sleeping compartment doubled as a makeshift voting booth.
"Yes, you can even vote from space! All three U.S. crew members had the privilege of voting from space station," Menon wrote.
The seamless voting process relies on an encrypted digital transmission system.
Once completed in orbit, the secure digital ballots travel via NASA's Near Space Network to White Sands, New Mexico, before being delivered to election officials in Harris County, Texas.
Texas law has officially permitted space-based voting since 1997.