New York woman goes to the US Embassy in Beijing to drop off her absentee ballot. She says no one is there to help her: ‘This is voter suppression’

A New York woman said she went to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing to drop off her absentee ballot and claimed no one was there to help her during the hours she had been given. Jen Willmen, who posts on Instagram as @byewillmen, described herself in her bio as a GenX teacher with upstate New York roots before moving to Beijing. She shared a video that has gained hundreds of thousands of views about what she said happened that afternoon.

Willmen said she had called the embassy the day before to confirm the drop-off times. She stated that staff told her Americans could drop off absentee ballots Monday through Friday between 1:30 and 3:00. She explained that Wednesday is her light teaching day, so she rearranged her schedule and took the afternoon off so she could go that day and give the ballot enough time to get back to the United States.

She said she arrived at the embassy at 2 o’clock. Willmen described the guards as Chinese guards who work for the embassy and said they were very nice. She claimed they told her the staff were in a meeting and could not let her in. She said she tried to explain that she had been told she could drop off her ballot between 1:30 and 3:00, but the guards still could not find anyone to take it.

State Department guidance allows ballot drop-offs at U.S. embassies

Willmen’s attempt to leave her ballot at the embassy fits a method the U.S. Department of State lists for Americans living abroad. According to Travel.State.Gov, U.S. citizens can drop off a completed absentee ballot at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate so the embassy can send it back to the United States.

The guideline also says the ballot must be addressed to the voter’s local election officials and must include enough U.S. postage, or a postage-paid envelope from the Federal Voting Assistance Program website.

Willmen said that after about 25 minutes of waiting, she became winded and started calling the embassy phone lines. She stated that the situation felt like voter suppression at that point. “This is voter suppression,” she said in the video.

She claimed she was still inside the stated 1:30 to 3:00 window and questioned why no one could take her ballot simply because staff was in a meeting. Her frustration comes as accusations of voter suppression have grown louder across the country, including reports of Democratic voters being turned away from polls.

She said that while she was on the phone, someone finally came to help. Willmen stated that the person apologized and then came running over. She described going downstairs with the staff member, where her ballot was placed in a special envelope and stamped for that day. She said she felt she had won because she did not give up and did not take no for an answer.

Willmen said she almost started crying because she believed no one was going to suppress her vote. She held up a small white sticker that showed a U.S. flag and the word “Voted” in Chinese characters. She ended the video by saying “Love you.” In the caption, she advised other Americans voting at embassies to email their state elections office with the date, time, and which embassy they used so the drop-off is documented.

Viewers responded with a mix of support and shared frustrations about voting from overseas. One person thanked Willmen for her courage and tenacity in getting her ballot accepted. Another commenter wrote about a family member’s experience in a previous election, stating, “They didn’t count my daughter’s ballot of the last general election. She voted from Norway.”

Several people connected Willmen’s effort to the broader history of voting rights. One viewer wrote, “Our Grandmothers had to fight so hard for that vote – and THANK YOU for continuing! You stand for all !!!!” Others offered practical advice, with one person saying, “Track your ballot. Make sure it gets where it’s supposed to.” Other voters have shared similar troubles, such as a Texas woman’s registration mysteriously suspended before Election Day.

Some comments reflected wider skepticism about the process. One person stated, “I have zero faith in this election. Stories like this everywhere.” At the same time, others said the discussion left them feeling more hopeful. One commenter wrote, “Thank you all for this conversation tonight. It gives me hope that there are more of us than them – We the people…and let’s not forget it.”