Open Discussion:
Should prisoners retain their right to vote in elections?
If so, under what circumstances? Should ex-cons regain their voting rights once they’ve served their time?
Read more about this issue Cameron Conaway’s Ballots Behind Bars: The Other 1%
Photo—bobjagendorf/Flickr
I stand corrected. And Paul I totally agree. All I’m saying is that it’s punishment and you have to endure your punishment for the aloted time. Regardless of weather you are a good person. I’m no angel but if I had to go to prison I would understand that it is what it is. You just have to do your time. Otherwise it’s barely punishment.
I believe that in general: no. Prisoners are in jail as they cannot function properly In society and therefore are in prison for, what should be, rehabilitation:’re-education sounds to Orwellian For me. once the punishment has been served, then by all means vote. However, I will accept that some misdemeanor crimes should be allowed for voting. Bigger crimws such as murder/child abuse/rape etc should not. The same goes for repeat offenders. Also take into consideration how many people who can vote, do!! There is a growing lack of trust in politics/politicians. If criminals could vote, would they?? What difference would… Read more »
I would not say that the majority of people incarcerated are non violent. I would say a major minority of them are. And do you think someone like Sandusky should have a say in how you get to live your life. I don’t think people like that should have an opinion at all. When a person is reformed absolutely. But when you got to prison you become property of the state for that specified duration. Doesn’t anyone understand what having your rights revoked means. The one percent of nonviolent or actually innocent people in prison are unfortunately victims of circumstance.… Read more »
In simplest terms, the facts show that you’re wrong, Chad.
“nonviolent offenders make up more than 60 percent of the prison and jail population. Nonviolent drug offenders now account for about one-fourth of all inmates, up from less than 10 percent in 1980.”
http://reason.com/archives/2011/06/08/prison-math
Possession of marijuana is an example of a ‘victimless crime.’ Such things DO exist.Gambling. Prostitution. Riding a motorcycle without a helmet. “Disorderly public conduct.” All victimless.
http://www.libertariannews.org/2011/09/29/victimless-crime-constitutes-86-of-the-american-prison-population/
In short, yes.
YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! Voting is a right, not a conditional right.
I have been looking at the issue of prisoner voter rights and it does get interesting. One reason to deny prisoner voter right is the logistics and costs of administering the votes. Given the Bizarre and extensive nature of US law from state to federal, working out where a vote should be cast given the incarcerated persons original place of residence Vs the Prison as a Place of residence which can involve multiple states – multiple legal definitions of vote – voter – residency – time ….. well it just ends up a none starter. You would need a bureaucracy… Read more »
Once their sentences are served, they should get all their rights back.
We should also end the war of drugs, and cull the various sex offender registries to remove anyone who is not actually a sexual predator (i.e. peeing on the street may be gross, but it is not a sexual crime).
I don’t expect any of this to happen before the collapse of the USA, though.
Yes. And I say that because unlike those types of narrow minded morons that say nonsense like “these people had their chance, and they blew it!11!!!LOLzzz!” I recognize the fact that the majority of people incarcerated are non-violent offenders charged with victimless crimes.
Of course not. These people had their rights taken from them because they chose not to abide by the rules that the rest of us follow no matter what everyday weather we agree or not. This should mean absolutley that you don’t get to participate at least until they are reformed but definatley not while their in prison. There are enough degenerates influenceing our world we don’t need to include the ones that have opted out.
You know, use of the word ‘degenerates’ is a tip-off of the worldview you’re coming from. And it’s not one I welcome for America’s future.
Yes. The decisions that are made by elected officials affect prisoners therefore they should get to vote. Honestly I think about ONLY circumstance that should result in someone losing their vote in American politics if they are no longer an American citizen because its pretty much then and only then that someone will no longer be affected by the decisions made by elected officials.
I think it would be a good thing to demonstrate that democracy is reliable and prison is not about locking people away but about “re-education” (I know, in reality there are some issues with this worldwide …). Many prisoners are “ordinary people” in many regards, while several people outside would perhaps better be locked away (as well as some politicians ;)) – if a system is afraid of it’s prisoners when it comes to voting, there might be just too many prisoners – this would make me think again. Modern “systems” (generally used without a negative connotation here) should never… Read more »
Most definitely! Prisoners make up a great portion of the proletariat, in most of those cases, they are representative of the lumpen proletariat. Overall, the aim of government is that it is supposed to serve the people, not itself, its interests, or the interests that strictly benefit its “friends” and itself. If the people’s voices are not heard, then the government has already failed in performing its most basic task – listening to the voices of its constituents. And so we return to prisoners. A problem which was designed is among the biggest problems that most former felons face, and… Read more »
Yes. Absolutely, citizens should always retain their voting rights. It shouldn’t be possible to lose them. One of the most compelling arguments for securing voting rights is that such a high percentage of Americans are in prison.
“Yes. Absolutely, citizens should always retain their voting rights. It shouldn’t be possible to lose them.”
+1
Agreed. Convicts are citizens too and have every right to be both heard and represented.