Virginia: The Law 'Stinks'
"This might not be illegal, but it sure stinks to high heaven," quipped Virginia Republican Party Chairman, Del. Jeffrey M. Frederick on state advocates registering detention center inmates awaiting trial. The Washington Post and Washington Examiner stated that registration forms and absentee ballot information was delivered to the chagrin of the Republican Party which, in turn, blasted county officials.
National: Voting Rights Confusion, Education, History
Commenting on the confusion behind the various disenfranchisement laws throughout the U.S., Erika Wood of NYU's Brennan Center for Justice stated the need for federal voting rights legislation. "The officials that are in touch with the public and would-be voters are confused and misinformed on the law and not trained on the law and once they tell somebody that they are not eligible to vote that information can obviously spread through the community and have a ripple effect - so there really is just massive confusion and misinformation out there that results in what we call 'de facto disenfranchisement," she was quoted as saying in Alternet.
The Associated Press reported that numerous local and national organizations throughout the U.S. are engaged in education on voting rights issues for those with felony convictions. "All we're trying to do is make sure that, if someone is eligible, that they know their rights and that if they want to vote, they can take part," said a Barack Obama campaign spokesperson. "I think there's a lot of misinformation out there. Even people who may have been guilty of a misdemeanor feel like the felony laws apply to them and say they can't vote."
Insights, the American Bar Association's magazine, featured an article written by Erika Wood on the history of disenfranchisement dating back to Reconstruction - and the progress that has commenced over the last decade.
California: Accessible Resources at Prisons for Families, Inmates
A voting rights advocacy group is asking the county supervisor if it can set up a voter's information table outside a prison in Alameda County to urge the visitors to get inmates to register and vote by absentee ballot, the Oakland Tribune reported. The Alameda Sheriff's Office has been instrumental in educating inmates on their voting rights. One employee was quoted as saying that fliers are posted around living quarters reminding inmates to vote and that they can request voter-registration forms directly from the facility. "I think we're doing a great job educating inmates on their voting rights," Sgt. Kevin Ary said.
Georgia: Those Yet to be Sentenced Can Vote
The Georgia NAACP is tackling the issue of inmate voting and spreading the word that inmates awaiting trial can vote in the upcoming election. "Those who have not been sentenced, those who are not carrying felony convictions, those who have done their time, or who may just be getting out and who are off probation...understand that they have a right to vote," NAACP State President Edward DuBose was quoted as saying by WRDW News 12. "There are people who are in jail right now who have not been convicted, who have not been charged, who are just sitting there. They should have the right to exercise their right to vote."
Alabama: Several Voting Rights Suits Challenge Constitution, Political Party, Antiquated Law
As Election Day gets closer, inmate voting continues to be a pressing issue in Alabama after the Republican Party asked that inmate voting efforts be halted. One lawsuit has been filed by the ACLU on behalf of three formerly incarcerated individuals who weren't allowed to register to vote; a second suit was filed on behalf of Rev. Kenneth Glasgow's efforts to register inmates awaiting trial, according to the Birmingham News. NYU's Brennan Center for Justice also said last week that it wants to seek records about voter roll purges in Alabama and another dozen states.
Huntsville Times columnist David Person revisited the voting rights issue in Alabama which has both state employees and prospective voters confused. The state's list of crimes of moral turpitude has grown from 13 to 400 amidst the Republican Party's request that inmate voting cease, in addition to a lawsuit (in jeopardy of being thrown out) filed by formerly incarcerated individuals who want their voting rights restored. "If I didn't know better, I'd think that our leaders are more concerned about how many eligible voters they can refuse the right to vote than they are about ensuring that the right to vote remains sacrosanct," Person's op-ed stated. "Due to Alabama's unfortunate history of suppressing the vote, it would be profoundly disturbing if that were true."
An Opelika-Auburn News editorial stated its position on the Secretary of State's decision to allow individuals with drug convictions to vote. "We do not think precincts will be overrun by ex-cons looking to score a drug deal on the way out the door. If they didn't care about America, they wouldn't want the right to vote," the editorial stated.
Tennessee: State Reports Increase in Registration of Individuals with Felony Convictions
Despite confusion on how and if residents with felony convictions can vote, 1,200 individuals with felony offenses registered to vote by the deadline, according to WSMV-4. In the past, vote restoration required a lawyer and going to court if one was sentenced before Jan. 15, 1973 or after May 18, 1981. (Individuals convicted of a felony between Jan. 15, 1973 and May 17, 1981 never lost their voting rights in Tennessee.) Today, however, individuals must also be current in child support obligations. Recently, a federal judge in Nashville rejected a suit that could have automatically restored the voting rights of thousands of convicted felons who were contesting state law.
New York: Voting Rights Must Not Be Denied; State Officials Must be Educated in Order to Educate Others
The Albany County Board of Elections was the least informed of voting rights for ex-felons among several Capital Region boards and may have denied many eligible voters access to the booth, according to an NYU Brennan Center for Justice survey gauging the knowledge of state personnel. The Times Union reported that one board of elections representative answered all three survey questions wrong, leading the organization to believe that hundreds of individuals seeking to vote have been erroneously turned away. "They said people on probation could not register to vote or didn't know if it was true, they said ex-felons had to provide documentation, which is not true, and they said they were not familiar with the memo," the Brennan Center's voting rights fellow, Liz Budnitz, stated.
Anthony Papa who was incarcerated under New York's Rockefeller laws for 12 years wrote an opinion editorial on being formerly disenfranchised. "When I went to register, I was shocked when they informed me that I had to wait until I was first released from parole. I felt the pain of felony disenfranchisement since it seemed I was being further punished for my crime," he sated. "I saw my Queens neighborhood deteriorating around me but was powerless to do anything about it by casting my vote. I was elated when, after waiting for five years, I completed parole and was able to vote again. Only then did I feel like I was fully welcomed back by society as a citizen." For more articles on impacted people read City Limits and the Democrat and Chronicle.
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