Today, U.S. Senator Ben Cardin and several others introduced the Democracy Restoration Act to “restore voting rights in federal elections to the million Americans who are out of prison and living in the community.” A House companion bill is expected to be introduced soon.
Estelle Rogers, Project Vote’s Legislative Director, applauded the sponsors for reintroducing this common-sense reform to our federal voting laws.
“Study after study has shown that a prisoner’s effective re-entry into society makes all the difference in preventing recidivism. The right to vote and participate in community decisions is an integral part of the re-entry process. Yet, state laws on this subject vary widely, making one’s right to vote dependent upon arbitrary state lines. It just doesn’t make sense,” she said.
The DRA sets a uniform “ceiling” for re-enfrancishement laws. Each state must allow, at a minimum, the ability to vote in federal elections after the voter serves his prison sentence, without regard to probation, parole, or restitution penalties. A state may be less restrictive than that, but not more.
Find out more about S. 772 at Sen. Cardin’s website.
Learn more about felon voting rights here.
Photo: Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights via Creative Commons License