Posts tagged The Appeal Political Report
When People in Prison Can Vote, Officials "Treat Them with Some Respect"

“She added that voting from prison “does not negate their incarceration or any work done by law enforcement to put them there” but that it could “force elected officials who played a part [to] think twice about likening them to animals. If more district attorneys, mayors, governors or attorney generals, knew that every inmate could vote in their elections, they may start seeing them in a different light…maybe even treat them with some respect.”“

The Appeal: Political Report

November 22, 2019

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Felon DisenfranchisementPhillip ReevesThe Appeal Political ReportComment
Elections Could Expand Voting Rights This Fall. They Will Take Place in an “Intolerable Condition.”

“All three states have exceptionally harsh disenfranchisement laws. Kentucky and Virginia laws provide for a lifetime voting ban on anyone convicted of a felony; Mississippi imposes a lifetime ban for a long list of offenses, which range from perjury and theft to murder. Although Virginia law is as harsh as Kentucky’s, in practice voting rights have been considerably more expansive there since 2016.“

The Appeal Political Report

September 26, 2019

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Felon DisenfranchisementPhillip ReevesThe Appeal Political Report, Virginia, Kentucky, MississippiComment
“A Sliver of Light:” Maine’s Top Election Official on Voting From Prison

“When I talked with one of the social workers at the prison about the driver’s license, they said that it’s like that sliver of light that comes in through the ceiling. For some of them, it’s their last connection to the outside world, having a driver’s license. There’s a little bit of humanity involved here as well. Much of the way we handle corrections is very vengeful, you lock somebody away forever. I’m not judging whether or not that’s appropriate, but you cannot deny that you are still working with human beings, people who have a psychological structure that is greatly impacted by their incarceration.“

The Appeal Political Report

May 2, 2019

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Felon DisenfranchisementPhillip ReevesThe Appeal Political Report, MaineComment
Spotlight on Disenfranchisement in Nevada, as State Eases Rights Restoration

“Nevada is one of 12 states where people are still disenfranchised after completing a sentence. The upcoming reform (Assembly Bill 181) will keep Nevada on that list. While it will expand the groups who qualify for automatic rights restoration, anyone convicted of a higher-category felony and anyone with multiple convictions of whatever severity will remain disenfranchised even after serving a sentence. (AB 181 is thus weaker than Florida’s Amendment 4, which was adopted via referendum in November and does not contain the latter exception.)“

The Appeal Political Report

December 20, 2018

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Felon DisenfranchisementPhillip ReevesThe Appeal Political Report, NevadaComment
In the Wake of Amendment 4: Spotlight on Disenfranchisement in Kentucky

“Kentucky and Iowa are the two states that disenfranchise people convicted of all felonies for life. (Virginia law provides for this as well, but recent governors have mostly gotten around it with executive orders. Other states, like Mississippi, also permanently disenfranchise many people.) To get their rights restored, Kentuckians must apply to the governor, and few are enfranchised this way. Governor Matt Bevin restored no one’s rights during his first year in office in 2016, even though more than 300,000 Kentuckians lacked the right to vote that year, according to a report by the Sentencing Project. That’s over 9 percent of Kentucky’s voting-age population.“

The Appeal Political Report

December 6, 2018

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Felon DisenfranchisementPhillip ReevesKentucky, The Appeal Political ReportComment