[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 32 (Wednesday, March 16, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E453-E454]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           CIVIC PARTICIPATION AND REHABILITATION ACT OF 2005

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 15, 2005

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce the Civic 
Participation and Rehabilitation Act of 2005, legislation that will 
provide persons who have been released from incarceration the right to 
vote in Federal elections.
  With just two states, Maine and Vermont, placing no restrictions on 
the voting rights of offenders or ex-offenders, the United States may 
have the most restrictive disenfranchisement policy in the world. Such 
prohibitions on the right to vote undermine both the voting system and 
the fundamental rights of ex-offenders. This legislation will serve to 
clarify and expand voting rights, as well as assist former felons with 
their reintegration into our democracy.
  This past November it was estimated that approximately 2.3 percent of 
the voting age population, about 5 million people, were prohibited from 
voting because of state felon disenfranchisement laws. While it is 
undeniable that this group of disqualified voters was large enough to 
influence the outcome of close elections, partisan concerns obscure the 
fact that our varied, state-by-state approaches to ex-offender voting 
rights leads to confusion and disenfranchisement of legitimate voters 
under these existing laws. In the past two election cycles, flawed 
voter purges have deprived legitimate voters of their rights. Moreover, 
in Ohio, an erroneous interpretation of state law by the Secretary of 
State deprived thousands of ex-felons of even the right to register. 
Only federal law can conclusively resolve the ambiguities in this area 
plaguing our voting system.
  In addition to tainting this country's fundamental principle of the 
right to vote, denying voting rights to ex-offenders denies them of the 
opportunity to fully participate and contribute to their society. 
Disenfranchisement laws isolate and alienate ex-offenders, and serve as 
one more obstacle in their attempt to successfully reintegrate into 
society. Restricting voting rights, a critical tool of self-
empowerment, can only lead to higher rates of recidivism, community 
apathy, and other social ills. We fail not just ex-offenders by denying 
them the right to vote, but the rest of a society that has struggled 
throughout its history to be legitimate and inclusive. Just like poll 
taxes and literacy tests prevented an entire class of

[[Page E454]]

citizens, namely African Americans, from integrating into society after 
centuries of slavery, felon disenfranchisement laws prevent ex-
offenders from reintegrating into society after retribution.
  Statistics on felon disenfranchisement indicate that Congressional 
action is clearly warranted. The Sentencing Project estimates that 4.7 
million Americans, or 1 in 43 adults, have currently or permanently 
lost the right to vote as a result of a felony conviction. 1.4 million 
or 13 percent of African American men are disenfranchised, a rate seven 
times the national average. Given current rates of incarceration, 3 in 
10 of the next generation of African American men can expect to be 
disenfranchised at some point in their lifetime. An estimated 676,730 
women are currently ineligible to vote as a result of a felony 
conviction. These statistics have prompted state responses. Most 
recently, Alabama, Nevada, Wyoming, and Connecticut, have adopted 
legislation that expands voting rights for ex-felons. We must now act 
at the Federal level.

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