Should Felons Be Allowed to Vote?

Yes. Save the obvious examples of mental incapacity, be it age-related deterioration, childhood etc., democracy can't be selective if it is to remain democratic.

Prisons tend not to be the nicest places. Those who have to endure it should at least be able to vote for the people who might make it a little less horrific, a little more comfortable. Prisoners make easy political demons, a good scare-tactic which deprives them of their humanity in the eyes of the general public. These people need their vote more than the politically significant, well-off electorates. Then there's the already discriminatory nature of penal systems in most of the world, even countries with good justice systems. It's too much to expect justice in a system where criminals are denied any further say, especially given the enormous range of what constitutes criminality.

I would consider an act of terrorism or (for countries lucky enough to have bans), membership of neo-Nazi groups and the like the only legitimate reasons to deny suffrage to people.

 

I think as long as they are not harming anyone or their property they should be allowed to vote and if they did their time and are not a threat to society I think they should be allowed to vote. Anyway there are so many felonies that are unconstitutional in my opinion so I think they should have the same rights as anyone else. Voting for a politician regardless of what felony they committed does not harm anyone so I don't think it really matters.

 

I did have to think about this one and come back. There is a lot to consider and one does have to think why should they be given the right to vote after doing something illegal that has put them into jail, however if they are repaying their debt to society and are truly remorseful for their actions, I believe they still should be given the right to vote. I think the only ones who should not are the ones who don't believe they have done something wrong or don't want to take responsibility for their own actions. Serial killers, terrorists for example. There is a line that needs to be drawn and for me, it would be on a case by case situation, almost like when a prisoner gets paroled or early release for good behavior. If they show they are willing to account for their actions, be remorseful and are truly wanting to come out a better person, then yes.. They should be given the right to vote. I hoping I have made some kind of sense here with my post.

 

Anyone who will vote 'no' does not understand the concept of democracy.

 

As far as I know the British Parliament is still defying the European Court of Human Rights over this issue. The Conservative led government and Labour opposition are both opposed to giving prisoners the vote.

 

Yes. What would the threat be? It's not like the candidates would be actively advocating for criminal behavior or something. Many people believe a prison should be a place of rehabilitation and what better way to rehabilitate and actively engage prisoners than to allow them to be a part of society, albeit in a limited way for a time?

 

Shoot! I clicked the wrong one. Take 1 off of no and put one on yes when calculating.

 

Yes. They still have a stake in society.

 

Yes.

 

They should certainly not be able to vote at all.

They chose to inflict misery on other people's lives therefore they deserve to lose some civil and po9litical rights during the time of their sentence.

The Europeans are attempting to force the UK to allow prisoners to vote, but fortunately the government is in touch with people on this issue and has told them where to go.

 

So...um, let's say we have a guy in there on trumped up marijuana possession charges. Does he deserves scorn as much as the guy who killed six kids?

I mean, are you drawing a line here or is it ALL prisoners who deserve to have their civil and political rights taken away? Just asking .

 

Okay, I'll give you the "during the time of their sentence" part. I was convicted of a felony almost 11 years ago. I was sentenced to 5 years probation. I did everything that I was supposed to. Other than a public intoxication charge where I passed out in the bed of my truck instead of driving home (no taxi in the little town) I haven't been in trouble since.

Do you think I should be able to vote now that I am beyond "the time of my sentence"? I know that the government doesn't think so.

 

Regarding the two above messages.

People should not be able to vote whilst in prison, if someone is in Prison for a minor offence then they will be in prison for less time and will be able to leave prison sooner and then vote in more elections. Maybe if you are on remand awaiting a trail and have yet to be proven guilty then you could get a postal vote, but if you are convicted then why should you be able to vote?

Redneck, as your sentence has ended then yes you should be allowed to vote in my opinion, and I know this is the case in some countries.

 

Completely placing people out of society does not really help their reintegration back into society after their sentence, does it?

 

A lot of them i.e. murderers will not be integrated back into society anyway. As for the rest, most of them just want to continue with a life of crime.

 

I really don't see the logic in preventing felons from voting. They're still citizens of the United States, whom our Constitution guarantees the right to vote several times.

 

Yes.

 

Either revoke their citizenship entirely or treat them the same as everyone else.

 

Of course, I think it's ridiculous that 2.5% of Americans cannot vote because of a felony charge. If they had a vote, then some of the idiot politicians wouldn't strive to make prisons any worse than they already are. By the way, it may be 2.5% of Americans, but what is even worse is the number of African Americans who can't vote due to felonies, which is 7.6%. In Florida, over 10% of the population can't vote, and almost a quarter of African Americans in Florida can't either.

Number of People by State Who Cannot Vote Due to a Felony Conviction - Felon Voting - ProCon.org