4 astronauts vote early from space

On US election day, astronauts Butch Wilmore, Sunita Williams, Nick Hedge and Don Pettit shared shared a picture of themselves on Instagram while sporting socks in patriotic hues. The socks of the astronauts featured a message “Proud to be American.”

According to the Texas Harris County Clerk of Court's Office, the astronauts cast early ballots for president from the International Space Station.

Over 1.2 million individuals. including the astronauts, cast early ballots in Harris County, Texas.

Ballots cast in space are sent to Earth via NASA's Near Space Network, a network of satellites in orbit that connect to antennas on Earth, much like the majority of data sent between the space station and mission control.

During a press conference from the space station on September 13, Williams told reporters, “It's a very important duty that we have as citizens, and I'm looking forward to being able to vote from space, which is pretty cool.”

Voting from space has been possible for American astronauts since 1997, when the Texas Legislature passed a bill that stated “a person who meets the eligibility requirements of a voter… but who will be on a space flight during the early-voting period and on election day”.