Month: February 2014

Holder Backs Restoration Of Former Felons’ Voting Rights

EricHolder2In a speech at Georgetown University Law Center on Tuesday, Attorney General Eric Holder asked states to repeal the laws that prohibit felons from voting even after they are released from prison.

According to the Justice Department, voting rights for felons are restricted in 11 states, which are: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wyoming.

State Republican leaders made clear that they were not receptive to Holder’s remarks.

In the past, Holder has sued Texas and North Carolina to overturn voter-identification laws that studies show are more likely to keep minorities and the poor from voting.

Laws banning ex-felons from voting disproportionately affect minorities. African-Americans represent more than a third of the estimated 5.8 million people who are prohibited from voting.

According to the Attorney General, 10 percent of the population of Florida is ineligible to vote because of the ban on ex-felons at the polls.

This post of updated to use the word “ex-felon” and list the states that restrict ex-felons’ voting rights.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/12/us/politics/holder-urges-states-to-repeal-bans-on-voting-by-felons.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/11/eric-holder-felon-voting_n_4762863.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/eric-holder-makes-case-for-felons-to-get-voting-rights-back/2014/02/11/b0556492-932b-11e3-84e1-27626c5ef5fb_story.html