This past Tuesday was election day and as we cast our ballots across the country, people are fighting to expand ballot access to those millions of citizens impacted by felony disenfranchisement nationwide. This isn’t a fight that just started and it isn’t one that will be ending anytime soon. In 2016, 40,000 people in Maryland had their voting rights restored. In 2018, Amendment 4 re-enfranchised more than 1 million formally incarcerated Floridians. Both of these decisions were proceeded by a National Prison Strike demanding that our electorate fully enfranchise all of its citizens. With the passing of both pieces of legislation, sparks ignited fires across the country and ending felony disenfranchisement became the trend that captured the nation’s conscious.
Bills towards ending felony disenfranchisements were introduced in 17 states this year as well as in Washington D.C. In States like Kentucky and Iowa organizers are pushing for legislation that would restore the voting rights of people while serving their post sentence requirements whether that be probation in for parole. In States like Connecticut and Hawaii we’ve seen organizers push even further to restore people’s voting rights while serving their prison sentence. While moves are being made nationwide, there are some states where legislators aren’t willing to start the conversation about restoring voting rights, but they do recognize the negative consequences of felony disenfranchisement. In states like these, Mississippi and Georgia, legislators are developing a felony disenfranchisement committee where the act of disenfranchising residence based upon their incarceration status will be studied for further action. All across the country the voting rights of impacted citizens are being questioned and fought for. The fact that we are living in a democratic nation that disenfranchises millions of its own residence is a ridiculous and unsustainable realization. While not all of the 18 bills will be able to pass into law this year, there are a few States whose efforts are still underway so I want to take the time to highlight these so that we as a national movement can focus our attention on supporting these organizers in the best way fit.
New Jersey Legislators Aim to Lead the New Suffrage Movement
In 2018 the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice initiated 1844 No More, a campaign targeted towards completely ending felony disenfranchisement in the state by restoring not only the voting rights of those on probation and parole but by also fully re-enfranchising incarcerated residents. The bill was introduced by Asm. Sumter and Sen. Rice in both the Senate and the Assembly in March of 2018. Since then organizers have been pushing legislators to stand up in favor of full enfranchisement. Even New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy hopes that his State can be a leader in progressive ideals. The passing of S2100 & A3456 would definitely put New Jersey in a new well deserved leading position. He’s been vocal about signing the legislation as soon as it reaches his desk. The passing of S 2100 would put New Jersey in a new place far ahead many of the states who’ve been hesitant to make such a decision.
New Jersey was one of the first states to disenfranchise is incarcerated citizens in 1844. Realizing that this was more than a century ago, organizers are attempting to turn the wheel forward. We no longer want to live in a state where people are told that their voices aren’t valuable simply because of mistakes that they’ve made in their past. It is essential that we incorporate the voices of our incarcerated members of society if we want to see significance change in the criminal legal system. New Jersey residents can find their Assembly member to contact here.
Californians Call Out Bifurcated Law
Following New Jersey another state who’s legislation we should be looking closely at because of their proximity to success is California’s ACA 6, constitutional amendment to restore the voting rights of people while on parole. California is one of the few bifurcated states where depending on the type of post sentencing program one is enrolled in, they can be disenfranchised. Residence on probation are able to vote while those on parole cannot.
This type of bifurcated law is confusing and makes it more difficult for clerk offices to update there databases in order to accommodate the needs of newly-released citizens seeking or inquiring on their voting eligibility. In addition to that, many people on probation are effectively disenfranchised due to the confusion that administrators can barely keep up with. Organizers are hoping to end this confusion by simplifying the law through re-enfranchising those on parole. At this point the law has passed the assembly and is now headed to the Senate side of the legislature for a vote. Following a favorable vote in the Senate it will be sent to the governor’s desk to be signed into law. Initiate Justice organizers have been mobilizing residents to contact their state senators and urge them to vote in favor of ACA 6. This would start with the Senate Election committee members. Once the bill passes that committee we’ll be focused on contacting the Senate Appropriations Committee members before a final full floor vote on the bill from all Senate members. Californians can find their state senator to contact here.
Massachusetts Supporters Scramble for Signatures
In the state of Massachusetts people can vote immediately upon their release from prison, placing Massachusetts in the second-tier felony disenfranchisement bracket. But without the full enfranchisement of its incarcerated residence, it still falls behind Maine and Vermont. Interestingly, Massachusetts was the last state to revoke prisoners right to vote in 2000. People imprisoned in Massachusetts could participate in local and stat elections as recently as 20 years ago. Devastatingly, thousands’ voting rights were restricted via an executive order by Governor Paul Cellucci in response to prisoners formation a political action committee. There have been only three governors since. It would be reasonable for Gov. Charlie Baker to restore that community via executive order if his commitment to progressive leadership were sincere, but citizens have taken the initiative personally, forming the Mass POWER collective to petition restore prisoners voting rights and this month residents have the opportunity to get involved.
We should celebrate the formation of political organizations in the prison because when prisoners become civically engaged they are less likely to be criminally engaged. Right now Massachusetts residents are in their final weeks of collecting signatures to restore prisoners’ right to vote the state by having the question on the ballot of Massachusetts requires 80,000 signatures to be collected in order for the initiative to be added to the ballot. If you are a resident of the state of Massachusetts urge you to connect with the Mass POWER collective during this crucial time of the campaign. For those who haven’t volunteered with Mass POWER before you can Sign up on their website or email masspowervote@gmail.com. We have a goal to reach over 80,000 signatures from MA voters by November 20.
Get Involved Now
If you have networks in Massachusetts, California or New Jersey please connect to organizers working with Mass POWER, Initiate Justice and the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice. It is impossible for us to assume that our legislators would be able to serve the interests of a population of millions of people who they are not required to maintain a dialogue with. The vast majority of elected officials go their entire career without ever visiting a single prison. Voting is the simplest way that imprisoned people can communicate with their government as they are restricted from a multitude of other avenues including posting on social media, sending an email, attending a legislative hearing or especially meeting at a legislators office.
By restricting our incarcerated brothers and sisters from participating in government through this simple and most remedial form of participation, voting, we disservice those individuals and ourselves. The more civically engaged a population, the less likely they are to break the law by engaging in criminal behavior. Civic engagement deters unlawful behavior. There is an electorate language that we empower our comrades with when we allow them to participate in the electorate, even by simply allowing them their right to vote. Civic engagement should be perceived as a valuable part of one’s rehabilitation during their incarceration. While in prison people who may have never participated in the elections process or understood the way they were impacted by it are much more likely to become engaged civilly engaged during their incarceration. We must develop a government that embraces politically involved incarcerated people.
