The others at the table looked at me as if I was a fool. I had to explain I was from New York -- where hearings and votes are basically held at the discretion of a Committee Chair (and her chamber's leader). Of course, I already knew New York did things differently.
The commission tasked with reforming New York's hodge-podge sentencing procedures included restoring voting rights to parolees among their recommendations. It’s about time. A quick peek into the history of the state’s felony disenfranchisement law reveals ugly origins.
Our nation's political leaders, particularly those in Congress, would do well to learn from a state that seized, rather than deferred, its reform moment.
There's a rare chance to reform voting laws to expand the electorate and strengthen democracy, not just next year but for the next decade. But election reform in 2008 must start in 2007 -- and time is slipping by.
