Tanks to Richard Winger for this post.

The Washington, D.C. City Council has Passed a Bill to let Felony Prisoners Vote this year. The Only other Jurisdictions in the U.S. that do that are Maine and Vermont. The Bill has Not yet been Signed by the Mayor.

Washington D.C. has a very High Incarceration Rate and up to 4,500 People could be Affected by the Measure, included in Emergency Police Reform Legislation that Passed the City Council this week.

“Expanding voting rights to persons in prison is a historic step for American democracy,” said Nicole Porter, Director of Advocacy at the Sentencing Project, a Criminal Justice Reform Group, in a Statement. “I am hopeful that the District’s action will inspire states to recognize the value of universal suffrage and the engagement of all its citizens.”

The U.S. has some of the Strictest Policies in the World when it comes to Disenfranchising People Convicted of Felonies of their Right-to-Vote, and States have widely Divergent Policies dictating whether someone can Regain their Voting Rights once Released from Prison.

In recent years, however, there has been a Push to Ease these Restrictions, recognizing that many of them have Roots in the Jim Crow South and were part of an Effort to Disenfranchise African Americans after they gained the Right-to-Vote.

All of those Efforts, however, have focused on making it easier to Restore Voting Rights after someone is Released from Prison.

The D.C. Measure is Unique in that it focuses on Restoring Voting Rights while People are still Incarcerated.

“The movement to re-enfranchise people with felony convictions has largely stalled at the prison gates,” Christopher Uggen, a Professor at the University of Minnesota who studies Felon Disenfranchisement, wrote in an Email.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker