Troubled 2004 governor’s race could inspire lawmakers to free up ex-cons’ voting rights
An embarrassing snafu uncovered in the 2004 governor’s election may soon be rectified.
Forces are mounting to overhaul the state’s ex-felon voting laws, long regarded as not only one of the most unjust in the country, but the most convoluted as well.
Last spring, a Joint Legislative Task Force released a study recommending the “automatic restoration of voting rights upon discharge” for ex-felons. Anyone not in “total confinement” — complete custody of the Department of Corrections — would be allowed to vote. The same law is used in 12 other states. ...