California proposal would reinstate prisoners’ voting rights
1 year, 10 months ago

California proposal would reinstate prisoners’ voting rights

Associated Press  

LOS ANGELES — California voters could decide whether to reinstate voting rights to people in prison on felony convictions under a newly proposed constitutional amendment. “I think we’re having a deep discussion on what it means to have voting as a right for every citizen,” Bryan said Wednesday. The California Constitution currently disqualifies people who are incarcerated in state or federal prison from voting and restores the right upon their release. The committee’s Republican vice chair, Assembly Member Tom Lackey, opposes the bill and said Wednesday it is a “betrayal” of crime victims.

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History of this topic

Many people in jail have the right to vote. So do many felons
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Many people in jail have the right to vote. So do many felons

NPR  

Many people in jail have the right to vote. “On paper, they have the right to vote, but it is not being actualized.” toggle caption Charles Rex Arbogast/AP Voting while incarcerated The U.S. is a patchwork system of state laws where it is up to voters, lawmakers, election administration and funding to allow incarcerated individuals to vote, Das said. Sponsor …

Thousands in California’s jails have the right to vote — but here’s why many won’t
3 months, 1 week ago

Thousands in California’s jails have the right to vote — but here’s why many won’t

Associated Press  

Ronald Latney used to believe his vote didn’t matter. “I know that voting can make things like this possible and can help better my circumstances, and later on in life.” The jail upon a hill Melinda Benson, director of Prisoner Legal Services for the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office, said every eligible person incarcerated in California should have a “meaningful” opportunity …

‘Trapped in the past:’ How some US states restrict voting after felonies
4 months, 3 weeks ago

‘Trapped in the past:’ How some US states restrict voting after felonies

Al Jazeera  

Fort Worth, Texas – There’s an elephant in the room when Crystal Mason talks about her seemingly never-ending legal case. In the last quarter-century, approximately 26 states, plus Washington, DC, have restored the right to vote for most people with felony convictions, with some exceptions for severe crimes like murder and sexual assault. In other states, like Texas, the automatic …

California voters to weigh proposal to ban forced prison labor in state constitution
5 months, 3 weeks ago

California voters to weigh proposal to ban forced prison labor in state constitution

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California voters will decide in November whether to remove an exemption for involuntary servitude from the state constitution under a proposal the state Legislature approved Thursday. The proposed amendment would change the constitution to say that “slavery and involuntary servitude are prohibited.” Proponents of the measure want the state to outlaw forced prison labor in which people …

Trump’s case casts a spotlight on movement to restore voting rights to those convicted of felonies
6 months, 3 weeks ago

Trump’s case casts a spotlight on movement to restore voting rights to those convicted of felonies

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — Republican-led states have historically made it difficult for those convicted of a felony to vote or barred it altogether. Those who advocate for the rights of people convicted of felonies say they hope Trump’s case convinces the public of the need to make regaining voting rights simple and straightforward. Some conservative states have restored voting rights for people …

Editorial: A felony conviction should not come with a life sentence on voting rights
7 months ago

Editorial: A felony conviction should not come with a life sentence on voting rights

LA Times  

Former felon Desmond Meade, left, fills out a voter registration form in Orlando, Fla., in 2019. So, it’s encouraging that Sen. Laphonza Butler has introduced a bill, the Next Step Home Act, that would restore voting rights in elections for federal offices, such as members of Congress, to some who were convicted of a felony and sentenced to federal prison …

Nebraska lawmakers pass a bill to restore voting rights to newly released felons
8 months, 1 week ago

Nebraska lawmakers pass a bill to restore voting rights to newly released felons

Associated Press  

— Nebraska lawmakers passed a bill Thursday to restore the voting rights of those convicted of felonies upon the completion of their sentences, including prison and parole time. The passage of the bill “means everything for the thousands of people who have not been full participants in society,” said TJ King, a Nebraska-based outreach specialist with the advocacy group Black …

Pressley, Welch introduce legislation to guarantee right to vote for people with felonies on record
1 year ago

Pressley, Welch introduce legislation to guarantee right to vote for people with felonies on record

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — Congressional Democrats have introduced legislation that would allow people convicted of a felony to vote in federal elections, a proposal that if enacted could restore the voting rights of millions of people in U.S. elections. In a statement, Pressley said the legislation was necessary due to policies and court rulings that “continue to disenfranchise voters from all walks …

Minnesota appeals court protects felon voting rights after finding a lower court judge overstepped
1 year, 1 month ago

Minnesota appeals court protects felon voting rights after finding a lower court judge overstepped

Associated Press  

A Minnesota appeals court on Thursday stepped in to protect voting rights recently granted to felons under a new law, undoing a judge’s effort to strip two convicts of their right to vote. The Minnesota Court of Appeals found Mille Lacs County District Judge Matthew Quinn had no authority to find the new law unconstitutional. In his orders, Quinn concluded …

Ahead of 2024, Felons Fight to Regain Right to Vote
1 year, 2 months ago

Ahead of 2024, Felons Fight to Regain Right to Vote

Live Mint  

Dennis Hopkins was convicted of theft 25 years ago in Mississippi and has long been out of prison. Now he is the lead plaintiff in a class-action case challenging the state’s disenfranchisement of people with felony convictions, one of a number of suits that could affect voting rights across the south ahead of the 2024 election. Courts in recent years …

Virginia says governor weighs circumstances of crimes in deciding on restoring felons’ voting rights
1 year, 5 months ago

Virginia says governor weighs circumstances of crimes in deciding on restoring felons’ voting rights

Associated Press  

RICHMOND, Va. — As Virginia Gov. The Republican governor is “less likely to quickly restore the voting rights of anyone who used a firearm in the commission of a crime,” Secretary of the Commonwealth Kay Coles James wrote to Robert Barnette Jr., president of the NAACP Virginia State Conference. Youngkin will also “generally speaking, but not always” work to restore …

People with felony convictions can now vote in Minnesota; secretary of state celebrates
1 year, 6 months ago

People with felony convictions can now vote in Minnesota; secretary of state celebrates

Associated Press  

ST. PAUL, Minn. — At a celebration of Minnesota’s new law that restores voting rights to people who have left prison, Democratic Secretary of State Steve Simon registered newly eligible voters Thursday, when the law went into effect. “It is the largest single act of enfranchisement in over 50 years” for the state, Simon said at Arlington Hills Community Center …

More states appear poised to expand voting access for people who were incarcerated
1 year, 9 months ago

More states appear poised to expand voting access for people who were incarcerated

NPR  

More states appear poised to expand voting access for people who were incarcerated Enlarge this image toggle caption Steve Karnowski/AP Steve Karnowski/AP State lawmakers across the country appear poised this year to continue a trend of revisiting rules for granting voting rights to people who were convicted of a felony. The law would restore voting rights after someone is no …

Minnesota justices leave felon voting issue to Legislature
1 year, 10 months ago

Minnesota justices leave felon voting issue to Legislature

Associated Press  

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld state laws that prohibit people with felony convictions from voting until they finish their parole, and put the burden on the Legislature to decide whether voting rights should be restored when people leave prison. “There may be many compelling reasons why society should not permanently prohibit — or perhaps prohibit at …

Michigan referendum won’t give inmates voting rights
54 years, 11 months ago

Michigan referendum won’t give inmates voting rights

Associated Press  

CLAIM: A proposal on the ballot in Michigan at the 2022 midterm election would give inmates the right to vote from prison. Proposal 2 would, among other things, require nine days of in-person early voting, establish a statewide absentee ballot system and recognize the “fundamental right to vote without harassing conduct,” according to the initiative petition’s language. You got to …

Promise of voting rights remains distant for those in US jails
2 years, 1 month ago

Promise of voting rights remains distant for those in US jails

Al Jazeera  

Social justice groups are pushing to expand access to ballots and other election materials for those held in US jails, where the majority retain the right to vote. “And there’s an awful lot of smoke in the US jail system.” One obstacle, many advocates say, is a widespread belief among incarcerated people that they lost their right to vote when …

California court rejects early releases for violent crime
2 years, 11 months ago

California court rejects early releases for violent crime

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California Supreme Court unanimously ruled Monday that corrections officials need not consider earlier release for violent felons, even those whose primary offense is considered nonviolent under state law. But the high court ruled that corrections officials acted properly in drafting regulations that “exclude from nonviolent offender early parole consideration any inmate who ‘is currently serving a …

Trial begins on challenge to NC felon voting restrictions
3 years, 4 months ago

Trial begins on challenge to NC felon voting restrictions

Associated Press  

RALEIGH, N.C. — A state trial began Monday in a lawsuit challenging when voting rights are restored for convicted felons in North Carolina. The current North Carolina Constitution forbids a person convicted of a felony from voting “unless that person shall be first restored to the rights of citizenship in the manner prescribed by law.” But the plaintiffs say the …

While states restrict voting, Illinois would expand access
3 years, 6 months ago

While states restrict voting, Illinois would expand access

Associated Press  

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — For Illinois, the changes to voting law that legislators made in the final hours of their legislative session this week seemed innocuous. “It sends a message to the nation that this is how it’s supposed to be.,” said Rep. Maurice West, the Rockford Democrat who With a nearly 20-year lock on control of both House and Senate, …

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