Florida may restore voting rights to 1.7 million ex-felons: So long, Republicans! [View all]

[applegrove]

AMANDA MARCOTTE at Salon

https://www.salon.com/2018/01/01/florida-may-restore-voting-rights-to-1-7-million-ex-felons-so-long-republicans/

"SNIP..........


Of the states that swung to Donald Trump in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama in 2012, Florida, with its 29 votes in the Electoral College, was by far the biggest. It's also one of the most prominent examples of how voter suppression efforts are distorting the political system, usually to benefit Republicans who would struggle to win in a more representative democracy. Florida's law bans anyone convicted of a felony from voting, for the rest of their lives. This means that nearly 1.7 million Floridians — more than one in 10 voting-age adults — are permanently barred from the polls.

Now a group of grassroots activists with Floridians for a Fair Democracy and the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition is working to change the law. Activists have been circulating a statewide petition to create a ballot initiative in November 2018 that would restore the rights of those convicted of a felony to vote after they have completed their sentence. The campaign is on track for success, at least in getting the initiative on the ballot. With one month to go until the deadline, nearly 85 percent of the ballots necessary to succeed have been signed by Florida voters.

While Trump's narrow and implausible electoral victory has drawn attention to the issue of voter suppression, for many working on the campaign it's less about electoral politics and more about basic issues of fairness in the criminal justice system.

“These individuals have all done their time, they’ve paid their debt, and it’s the right thing to do," Jen Tolentino of Rock the Vote, which has been supporting the grassroots activists in Florida, told Salon. "Once somebody has served their time, they should have the ability to actually be reintroduced to our community and participate in a meaningful way.”

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