State felony disenfranchisement laws keep millions of Americans from voting. These laws aren’t just anti-democratic — they send the message that the voices of individuals returning to their communities don’t count. And these voting bans disproportionately affect African Americans.
But we can change this. In 2018, Florida voters passed a ballot measure that re-enfranchised about 1.4 million Floridians — an outcome we have worked on for nearly two decades. Other states are considering similar reforms. And we’re urging Congress to pass federal legislation that would re-enfranchise in federal elections the millions of Americans who are no longer incarcerated but still can’t vote.