Home | Press/Reviews | Events | Beyond the Book | Background | Related Articles/Books  |
BackgroundFact Sheets Don't All U.S. Citizens Have the Right to Vote? No. Most states restrict the voting rights of citizens who have been convicted of felonies. Each of the fifty states has different rules about who can vote. There is no federal law governing the voting rights of people who have been convicted of crimes. In fact, 4.65 million Americans are disenfranchised, and cannot vote. Depending on the state, ex-felons may be barred from voting until they have finished their prison sentence, probation, or parole; paid fines; or completed a complicated and often difficult pardon or clemency process. Only Maine and Vermont allow all imprisoned citizens to vote. At least twelve states permanently disenfranchise ex-felons. In these states, even citizens who have served their prison terms, completed probation and parole, paid any fines, and been reincorporated into their communities are barred from voting, for life. Restoration of voting rights is a well-kept secret. State corrections authorities and elections offices rarely advise convicted citizens of their voting rights, even in states that restore that right after release from incarceration. Why should citizens with felony convictions vote? Denying the vote to 4.65 million citizens undermines American democracy. Ex-felon disenfranchisement is at odds with two core American values: the right of citizens to chose their government representatives, and the ability of an individual to start a new life. No other democracy disenfranchises so many citizens. The United States is the only democracy in the world that takes the vote away from ex-prisoners who have completed their sentences. Many countries also allow prisoners to vote, including Denmark, France, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Norway, Peru, Sweden, and Zimbabwe. It's part of effective rehabilitation. Voting rights restrictions fly in the face of our criminal justice system's goal of rehabilitating those who are serving their sentence. Ex-felons who have paid their debt to society and returned to their communities deserve the full rights of American citizenship.
These laws disproportionately affect Latinos as well: 16 percent of Latino men will enter prison in their lifetime, compared to only 4.4 percent of white men.
But the Tide has Turned Connecticut recently restored the vote to 36,000 citizens by extending voting rights to citizens on probation. New Mexico repealed the state's lifetime voting ban for persons with felony convictions. Pennsylvania recently restored the right to vote to thousands of ex-felons. Policy changes that lower barriers to voting for ex-felons have also been enacted in Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, Virginia, and Washington. Legislation removing barriers to vote has been introduced in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Emerging bipartisan, national support for voting rights. In August 2001, the National Commission on Federal Election Reform, chaired by former Presidents Carter and Ford, recommended that all states restore voting rights to citizens who have fully served their sentences. Thirty-one U.S. Senators recently voted for a measure introduced by Senators Harry Reid (D-NV) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) -- both former district attorneys -- to grant voting rights to ex-felons in federal elections. Many members of Congress, including Representative John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), have also sponsored voting rights legislation in recent years. Overwhelming public support for restoration of voting rights. According to a July 2002 Harris Interactive poll, 80% of Americans believe that all ex-felons who have completed their sentences should have the right to vote. The same poll found that over 60% of Americans believe that citizens on probation or parole should have the right to vote. Newspapers like The New York Times and The Christian Science Monitor have editorialized in support of voting by ex-felons. Voting Right Pamphlets for Specific States You can download and print out simple pamphlets that explain how to reclaim your voting rights in the following states:
Personal Stories: Tennessee: Jamaica S. picked up a low-level felony in 2000 after her then-boyfriend robbed a store and forced her to drive him from the crime scene. It was her only conviction, yet, for this she was permanently disenfranchised. In 2004, she linked-up with Nashville-based attorneys working to restore voting rights, and a couple days before the election a judge ruled that she could vote. State Representative Larry Turner, from Memphis, has spent years trying to bring Tennessee's legislature to end permanent disfranchisement. He's very vocal about its impact on the state's African American population. Alabama: Clinton Drake, a Vietnam vet whose children have also served in Iraq, cannot vote after serving several years in prison on a marijuana conviction. Unemployed, he hasn't managed to pay off all his fines, and therefore can't even begin the process of applying to have his civil rights restored. There's also Lorenzo Jones, convicted of breaking and entering when he was 18. Now in his forties, and a law-abiding member of the community, he still cannot vote. Pat Davis, a disgraced ex-state legislator, convicted of selling political favors, still cannot get her vote restored. By contrast, ex-Governor Guy Hunt, convicted on more serious corruption charges, pulled personal favors and managed to get his vote restored fairly quickly. Iowa: Kelvin Briggs, former prisoner, now works with ex-offenders in inner-city Des Moines and speaks extensively about the prevalence of disenfranchisement in this community. Representative Scott Raecker, a conservative Republican, has also championed the issue of re-enfranchisement. Montana: Casey and Eddie Rudd, both former prisoners, now run voter-education programs up and down Montana, informing people with felony convictions of their right to vote. Utah: Marianne Johnstone, heads the Prisoner Information Network, a group of grandmothers and great-grandmothers who visit prisons and registers released inmates to vote—literally as they leave the prison gates. Virginia: Lloyd Brown, convicted on drug charges in 1988, and completed his sentence in 1995, now works in a furniture store in the town of Danville. For years, Lloyd has, without success, tried to get his vote restored. He submitted all the paperwork, was told he had to go through a long waiting period, re-applied after the waiting period was complete and was told the state had lost all his paperwork. As of 2004, Lloyd was still voteless.
Related Demos publications:
For other related publications, click here. 
|
