Many convicted felons who have completed their sentence or parole, with the exception of murder and/ or sex offenders. They have previously received a lifetime voting ban or petition Florida to get their voting rights back at the discretion of a committee, with the exception of murderers and sex offenders, who must still petition to the committee. More than 60% of the Florida population voted to pass Amendment 4 on November 6th to their state constitution that allowed convicted felons out of prison the right to vote. Before this law passed, more than 1.5 million Floridians were denied the right to vote as part of one of only four states (the others being Iowa, Kentucky, and Virginia) that denied it. The Amendment reads that the disqualification from voting for persons with felony convictions “shall terminate and voting rights shall be restored upon completion of all terms of sentence including parole or probation.” I believe this is a right decision as these felons have already served their time and paid their dues to the justice system, now it is their time to get their rights back, particularly voting. It shows that there are still forms of disenfranchisement in the US and there is still work to be done in terms of civil rights in our nation and around the world, although parts of Europe and Asia have opened up voting to felons.
QUESTIONS:
- Do you believe convicted felons should have a right to vote?
- Would more felons voting move Florida (a swing state) into more of a Republican or Democratic State?
- How would this law affect Florida’s and maybe even America’s future political landscape?
I believe a felon's right to vote should be left up to the justice system. There are some crimes that are unforgivable and that actually impeded upon others' ability to act and influence government, and those that commit such acts forfeit their own right to vote through the denial of someone else's. I have no idea what the demographics of Florida state prisons are, so I'm unsure how allowing felons to vote would influence outcomes. I think this issue is already a part of the political landscape, and it is simply acting as another theater of debate.
ReplyDeleteI think that convicted felons who have served their sentence and probation or parole, with the exception of sex offenders and murders, should be given the right to vote. As Jeremy stated in the article, they have finished the sentence the justice system assigned to them and are theoretically suppose to come out changed. They are still American citizens and thus should be given their right to vote. As for moving Florida's general political views, I think it will have very little effect. I believe Florida will remain the swing state, unless a candidate or political party makes a big statement to support ex-cons. This law will not make a large impact on America's future political landscape, as it Florida is one of the last states to return voting privileges. If there were to be a big change we would have seen this occur with other states.
ReplyDeleteOf course felons should have a right to vote, they are American citizens just as much as anyone else. The impact of felons voting is debatable. Yes, African Americans, who traditionally vote Democrat were most disenfranchised by this policy, but until a couple of elections provide data, nothing is concrete. This law will have a positive effect, as its an expansion of democracy in America. I doubt it will change much, however because only a few states enact this policy, however it does reflect well on the people of Florida.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the first question, I believe that felons should be allowed to vote to the extent of their crime., because it is there constitutional right as a citizen. However, a conviction for petty theft should not be weighed the same as a murder to not allow a felon to vote.I agree with Jeremy and Sophie that the votes from the felons would not move it a great deal and continue to be a swing state. This law in the future would most likely push and encourage other felons in prison to vote.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the first question, I believe that felons should be allowed to vote to the extent of their crime., because it is there constitutional right as a citizen. However, a conviction for petty theft should not be weighed the same as a murder to not allow a felon to vote.I agree with Jeremy and Sophie that the votes from the felons would not move it a great deal and continue to be a swing state. This law in the future would most likely push and encourage other felons in prison to vote.
ReplyDeleteI believe that conflicted felons should have the right to vote, except for those who committed severe crimes such as murder. Even though they committed crimes, convicted felons who have served their time in prison are still United States citizens. Therefore, they should be given their basic right to vote. In fact, being able to vote might actually help them assimilate faster back into the regular and normal life. Given that there is little information about which party felons tend to vote for (Republican or Democratic), it is hard to say what their impact will be on Florida as a swing state of America’s future political landscape. However, it could be possible that future politicians will try to use ex-cons as a new voting group that could potentially be important swing votes.
ReplyDeleteWhile this topic is clearly controversial and I can very much understand both sides of this argument, I believe (like many of the responses here) felons should be allowed to vote. As long as the murderers and the sex offenders are not included in this law, I think it is only fair to give everyone an equal opportunity to vote. There are many people who committed small crimes and are now reformed who very much still deserve a right to vote. Though I don't really know enough about the felons in Florida to say whether it would affect the elections there, but I would assume many of the felons lean towards the Democratic side. Either way though, having so many more voters could highly impact Florida's elections because it is one of the most important battleground/swing states in the US.
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ReplyDeleteDue to felony disenfranchisement, roughly 6 million American citizens have been denied the right to vote. In particular, felony disenfranchisement has suppressed the political voice of African Americans. It is simply unfair to deny felons the right to vote as they are American citizens. Since African Americans and other minorities are disproportionately democratic, ending felony disenfranchisement will likely move swing states into democratic states.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with the comments above that some felons should be allowed to vote, however, it should be a case by case scenario. Dangerous felons or repeating felons like sex offenders should not be allowed to vote because they could do more harm. I think that it would have to be determined by how well they do on probation and how they do in rehabilitation, making sure that these felons don't relapse back into those crimes.
ReplyDeleteVoting is a constitutional right. And for former felons that have served their time, their constitutional right should not be withheld from them. Many felons are nonviolent or were charged of non-violent crimes so I think it would be unfair for them to not be able to vote. Just because one has committed a felony, that does not mean they can no longer think for themselves or their voice does not matter. I think that this Amendment is very valuable because it does not only give back the constitutional rights of the people, but it also challenges the public's prejudices towards convicts. Additionally, this change will prove to be beneficial to the Democratic party in Florida, but I do not think that it will make a significant change in the short term since Florida ahs been leaning right recently. But in the long run, this Amendment will results in many changes in not only election results but the policies in the state.
ReplyDeleteI believe that convicted felons should have the right to vote. They served their time in prison for their crime(s) and deserve their constitutional rights back afterwards. That being said, murderers and sex offenders shouldn't receive their rights back after their time in prison. I'm not sure what the political demographics of Florida prisons are, so it would be hard to determine if the state would become more Republican leaning or Democratic leaning. I don't think the change will be that significant, but it could change the outcome of Florida votes as a whole.
ReplyDeleteI think that convicted felons that have served their due time deserve the right to vote. I think it is crazy that sex-offenders are being grouped into the same category as murderers. Those two crimes are not close to the same magnitude. There are various degrees of crimes that can cause one to be considered a sexual offender. It's ridiculous and this political climate is to blame. I would like to point out that I am not trying to downplay sexual harassment. However, there are plenty of crimes other than murder that are worse than sexual harassment.
ReplyDeleteGenerally, convicted felons have done crimes that are of a higher magnitude than the common criminal. They could have been convicted for a number of things ranging from murder, assault, animal cruelty, and kidnapping. There are also "milder" felonies such as tax evasion, drug distribution, and vandalism on federal property. The word "convicted felon" is too broad and can cover anything from white collar criminals to child predators and murderers. Because of this, I do not think legislation that allows "convicted felons" the right to vote should be passed because it does not allow a clear distinction between the magnitudes of crimes committed. I do believe that certain convicted felons should have the right to vote after they have served their sentence, and shouldn't have to face further consequence and be treated the same as any other civilian. However, rapists, murderers, arsonists, etc. should not be given the same rights as they are a danger to society, and have proven that they do not care about the stability of their community.
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