More than 70 civil rights groups signed an open letter to presidential candidates, requesting the right of those incarcerated to vote — a stance currently only supported by Sen. Bernie Sanders. Others in the Democratic primary like Sens. Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren, have indicated they are open to the idea but have yet to commit to it in the same way.
“Felony disenfranchisement is not just anti-democratic and bad for public safety, it is an unpopular practice that sprang from the most shameful era of American history, a vestige of our past, wildly out of step with international norms. And now is the moment for its abandonment,” the letter said. “This growing movement against felony disenfranchisement is a promising endorsement of American values, but it raises a key question: Why disenfranchise people in prison to begin with? Why not let them continue to vote while they are incarcerated?”
Vice President Mike Pence shared the current administration's view on the topic at a Convention for the National Rifle Association. Pence spoke passionately against the movement and even used Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev as his lead example.
“The same people who want to restrict the right to keep and bear arms of law-abiding citizens believe the Boston Marathon bomber should be given the right to vote on death row. I got news for you, Bernie, not on our watch,” Pence said. “Violent, convicted felons, murderers, and terrorists should never be given the right to vote in prison. Not now, not ever.”
Despite Pence's remarks, Maine and Vermont already allow the practice being requested by groups like the American Civil Liberties Union, Southern Poverty Law Center, Right2Vote Campaign, and Greenpeace, while Iowa, Kentucky, and Virginia have permanently barred those convicted of felonies from voting.
"When we raise the bar and we say, ‘Hey we want their voice to be heard,’ we want them to have the right to vote, we want them to be valued and humanized in our society, we also raise the bar for all the people on probation and parole,” Amani Sawari, the national coordinator of the Right2Vote Campaign, said to Huffington Post.
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