Florida Closes Loophole to Allow Felons To Vote

Crisis, The, Jul/Aug 2006 by Stephen, Curtis

James B. "Fela" Coleman, 35, is fighting for a fresh start in Jacksonville, FIa. After serving 12 years in prison for armed robbery, Coleman was released last July. Now determined to change his life, he is newly engaged to be married, hosts a community-oriented webcast, counsels teenagers and regularly meets with church groups and city council members on a range of local issues from youth violence to education.

But as the mid-term elections approach, Coleman anxiously awaits word on whether his voting rights will be restored.

"I went to prison because of a bad decision that I made," says Coleman. "I corrected myself, and now I'm trying to make a difference in my neighborhood. Voting is essential to integrating myself back into society, but will I get a second chance or am I supposed to remain a suspect for the rest of my life?"

Since 1868, people with past felony convictions in Florida have been prohibited from voting. Under state guidelines, state correctional facilities are required to help prison inmates file requests to the clemency board to reinstate their voting and civil rights once they've completed their sentences.

In May, the Florida legislature passed a bipartisan bill to create a similar arrangement for people with felony convictions in county jails.

"This was a major loophole," says State Senator Frederica Wilson (D-Miami), who sponsored the legislation. "This problem disproportionately affects Black people, but it goes beyond one particular ethnic or racial group. There are thousands of people who aren't properly informed about how to get their rights restored."

Criminal justice advocates complain, however, that the measure fails to address effectively the widespread disenfranchisement of more than 600,000 people.

"They're band-aid solutions," says Muslima Lewis, director of the Florida ACLU's Racial Justice Project. "The rights restoration process is extremely cumbersome and there's a huge backlog of cases since the clemency board only meets four times a year. The only way to effectively change the law is to amend the state constitution."

In all, 13 states nationwide have provisions that permanently bar people with prior convictions from voting. Currently, reform efforts are being pursued in several states, including Alabama, Tennessee and Rhode Island.

In Florida, advocates plan to promote voting rights reform aggressively during this year's gubernatorial campaign as another presidential election draws near.

- Curtis Stephen