El Dorado County Registrar of Voters Bill Schultz is ushering in a new era of helping people in the military and overseas citizens cast a ballot.

A $1.8 million federal grant to El Dorado County will allow El Dorado and 12 other California counties to send ballots and voting information electronically to these voters.

The counties’ consortium, known as Cal E-Promise, will provide an easy to use, online interface for voters to access their ballot at their convenience. This is especially important for deployed military voters who may have unpredictable schedules.

Current law does not allow voters to mark the ballot online or return the ballot by email. Electronically delivered ballots must be mailed or faxed back to the Elections Department.

El Dorado County’s military and overseas citizens may access their ballot electronically by going to the Elections Department’s Military and Overseas Voters website.