Should Felons Be Allowed to Vote? Essay

However, that leaves a whole 33percent of ex felons that do not commit another crime and want to be productive members of society an ‘’earn’’ there voting rights back. Granted, being that statistics show a greater number of reoffending felons this is good cause to why society and the communities these ex felons reside are against felons voting. On the contrary State data shows that most prison admissions are for probation or parole violations. Maybe that's because punishment is so light: 79 percent of state inmates are released before reaching their maximum sentences. In other words, maybe they aren't afraid of being reincarcerated because they know they'll never serve their full terms and continue to commit certain crimes as a cry for help.

With the loss of 6.1 million voters in the election of 2016, this would make a huge impact on the votes in the United States. The four states that have the most percentage of disenfranchisement are Kentucky (26 percent), Virginia (22 percent), Florida (21 percent), and Tennessee (21 percent). Only two states have restrictions Maine and Vermont and only 12 states have prison, parole, probation, and post sentencing. Florida, Iowa, and Kentucky also banned convicts for the rest of their lives. “The felon and ex-felon populations may be large, but how many of them would actually turn out to vote? Overall

6.1 million Americans cannot vote because of a felony conviction, among the 6.1 million are large groups of the underrepresented. Representation is important when you intend to represent an entire country, so when 6.1 million voters, which of majority are minorities, are disenfranchised, there is a massive cut of representation in our system. This is exactly what is happening right now in the United States. As of 2016, an estimated 6.1 million people were disenfranchised due to a felony conviction. This figure has escalated dramatically in recent decades as the population under criminal justice supervision has increased. Even those who have completed their sentences in the ten states (Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Alabama, Florida, and Delaware) that disenfranchise people, post-sentence, make up over 50 percent of the entire disenfranchised population; totaling almost 3.1 million people. If these votes were to be restored, representation would increase, leading to an equal

Many people believe that felons do not deserve the right to vote. For these people,

unfair and often political. What disqualifies a convicted felon from voting in one state might not

Anyhow, there are people who believe that felons should not be given the right to vote once they are out due to the fact that they have broken the law and don’t have the right to choose a leader. For instance, the declaration of Independence states that unalienable rights include life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It does not say life, liberty and the right to vote. John Locke, who played an important part in the founding of America, also believed that each individual had certain rights that by nature they were entitled to, however, he also believed that the government had a duty to protect those rights. If someone violates another’s rights to life, liberty and property, then they forfeit their own rights to these things and society can punish him by removing their rights. The criminal has broken their social contract and violated the trust of their fellow citizens. In addition, not everyone is allowed to vote. Children, non citizens and those mentally incompetent are among those whose rights. “Voting requires certain minimum, objective standards of trustworthiness, loyalty and responsibility, and those who have

Felons need voting rights too! Felons and voting rights are starting to become a big deal. Felons are wanting the right to vote, but some states will not give them that right. All states should let felons vote depending on how severe their crime was. It is not right to deny someone the right to vote. There are multiple reasons for why they shouldn't vote, but there are also some good reasons or why they should be able to vote. Felons deserve the right to vote for multiple reasons.

Many views have been made on ex-felon’s voting right. People debate on whether or not the people who have committed these crimes should be able to vote or if that right should be taken away. The majority of people believe the individuals who commit these crimes should still retain their right to vote, which is true.

Should ex-felons be able to vote once they complete their sentence in prison? About 5 million people with a felony conviction can’t cast a vote in elections. In different states, there are different laws which mean some states go about felon voting differently. There are 9 states who permanently banned you from voting. People who are against ex -felons rights being restored argue no, because they feel that felons couldn’t make logic decisions before they got in prison so why would they be able to make logic decisions once they’re out. People who are for felons to be able to vote argue yes, because regardless of what they have done in their past, they’ve already paid for their crime and it is unfair. (Feaser). By law American citizens have the right to vote. Felons who have paid their debt to society by completing their sentences should have all their rights and privileges restored. By letting felons vote it will make the voting more diverse, and equal. Also allowing felons to vote will help with their transition back into society.

“There is an estimated number of 5.85 million Americans who are prohibited from voting due to laws that disenfranchise citizens convicted of felony offenses.” (Uggen). Varying by state, each disenfranchisement law is different. Only 2 out of 50 U.S. states; Vermont & Maine, authorize voting from convicted felons incarcerated and liberated as shown in (Fig. 1). But of the 48 remaining states these rights are either prohibited or authorized in at least 5 years succeeding to liberation. This disenfranchisement needs to be retracted due to fact that convicted felons; incarcerated or liberated, are U.S. citizens who are guaranteed constitutional rights that should allow them as citizens to have equal opportunity in political and social

Felon disenfranchisement conflicts with goals of rehabilitating felons through the existent criminal justice systems. Currently, 12 states entirely restrict ex-felons from voting. According to the laws in these

There are eleven states, Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wyoming, which make it exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for some felons to regain their right to vote. Most of these states do not allow criminals who committed serious felonies such as rape, murder, and kidnapping to vote without an action by the Board of Parole or the governor of the

In 2016, about 2.5% of the adult US population, or 6.1 million potential voters, were deprived of the right to vote because of a felony conviction. (Kozlowska) A felony is defined as “a crime, typically one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death,” including murder, the sale or manufacture of drugs, treason, and even tax evasion. (Google) Disenfranchisement is the state of being deprived of a right or privilege, especially the right to vote. The question of whether or not ex-felons should be disenfranchised is still discussed today; some believe that ex-felons can repay their debt to society by not voting, and some, vice versa. Unfortunately,

In Florida alone, more than 750,000 persons who have completed their sentences are ineligible to vote” (King, 2009). Those states who choose not to allow felons to vote feel as though they do not have the right to vote, because they have committed felony acts. Having that many people who can’t vote harms the U.S. due to the fact that they are unable to voice their opinion or input by voting.

Although some states believe that voting is a privilege that can be taken away after intolerable behavior, ex-criminals should be given voting rights because they are heavily impacted by government decisions, the vote is consequently taken away from low income, minority factions, and the US has a historical record of disenfranchising people regarding their race, color, previous servitude, and sex, so we have reason to question the disenfranchisement of other minorities.