# Could a democratic governor in Florida restore felons voting rights **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [December 24, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551 "2016-12-24T19:46:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/1 "2016-12-24T19:46:59Z")
10% of adults in Florida cannot vote due to a felony conviction, but 21% of black adults cannot vote in Florida due to a felony conviction. Seeing how black voters tend to lean democratic, giving them their voting rights back would help move the electorate to the left there. Blacks tend to support the democratic party 9-1 over the GOP (however men are in general more conservative, black men only support the dems 80%, and I’m sure the majority of felons are men). Anyway, can a democratic governor in Florida just wholesale restore voting rights to felons? The state probably would’ve went blue in 2016 had ex felons had the right to vote. ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2016, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/2 "2016-12-24T21:53:05Z")
First IANAL. This [piece](https://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/voting-rights-restoration-efforts-florida) from the Brennan Center for Justice says the restriction on felons voting in Florida is in the state Constitution though apparently voting rights can be restored via clemency. > [@](#): > > … The new rules adhere to the Florida constitution, which denies the right to vote for life to anyone with a felony conviction, unless individual clemency is granted by the governor. … Given that the Supreme Court of Virginia [overturned](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-court-invalidates-gov-terry-mcauliffes-order-restoring-felon-voting-rights/2016/07/22/3e1d45f6-5058-11e6-a7d8-13d06b37f256_story.html?utm_term=.16d94658af92) Governor McAuliffe’s blanket restoration of rights the precedent would seem to require a case-by-case review. Of course there could be significant differences between Virginia and Florida that I am unaware of. So perhaps a Democratic governor could implement a program to target voting rights restoration on a case-by-case basis, but to do so across the board may require an amendment to the state constitution, an unlikely prospect. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2016, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/3 "2016-12-24T22:15:13Z")
The party of felons? Rapists, murderers, and crackheads are really the demographic to chase? ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/4 "2016-12-25T01:33:34Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > The party of felons? Rapists, murderers, and crackheads are really the demographic to chase? Having paid their debt to society? Then yes. They do deserve their right to vote to be reinstated. BTW lets nip the implication on the bud: Many conservatives get the wrong idea that most felons are democrats but that is mostly really a result of the Republicans being so active in denying the rights of many that do reform. > **[Cruz on Violent Criminals and Democrats - FactCheck.org](https://www.factcheck.org/2015/12/cruz-on-violent-criminals-and-democrats/)** > > Sen. Ted Cruz misrepresented an academic study when he claimed that the "overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats." It is really a very rude awakening when ex-convicts find that being Republican does not help, so many then decide to support democrats because they are the ones that most of the time want to restore their rights. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/5 "2016-12-25T01:51:51Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > The party of felons? Rapists, murderers, and crackheads are really the demographic to chase? You mean the less rich less white guys who couldn’t afford better lawyers? Here in Texas, felons who have completed their sentences (imprisonment, probation and/or parole) are automatically re-enfranchised. ---
**Author:** ![Lubricious\_Integument](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/82dd89/32.png) [@Lubricious\_Integument](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lubricious_Integument)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/6 "2016-12-25T02:17:10Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Having paid their debt to society? Then yes. I don’t understand this line of reasoning. There can be several parts of a punishment for a crime: restitution to the victims, fine paid to the civil authorities, incarceration, probation, loss of voting rights, restricted access to firearms, listing on a registry of e.g. sex offenders, and probably many others that I can’t think of at the moment. There is simply no reason to assert that once a person who has been convicted of a crime is released from prison that their debt to society has been paid in full. What if a lifetime loss of voting rights is part of that payment? p.s. My beef is with the argument. I don’t agree with taking away voting rights. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/7 "2016-12-25T02:57:50Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > … Many conservatives get the wrong idea that most felons are democrats … so many then decide to support democrats … Sounds like many conservatives have the right idea. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/8 "2016-12-25T04:14:52Z")
> [@Lubricious\_Integument](#): > > I don’t understand this line of reasoning. > > There can be several parts of a punishment for a crime: restitution to the victims, fine paid to the civil authorities, incarceration, probation, loss of voting rights, restricted access to firearms, listing on a registry of e.g. sex offenders, and probably many others that I can’t think of at the moment. > > There is simply no reason to assert that once a person who has been convicted of a crime is released from prison that their debt to society has been paid in full. What if a lifetime loss of voting rights is part of that payment? > > p.s. My beef is with the argument. I don’t agree with taking away voting rights. I don’t agree with taking away their voting rights also, but I’m only trying to get a bit of a middle ground. Not saying that the middle ground would also be inadequate, but that is what I see as possible. In any case, I do think that once a person has been released from prison there is no longer IMHO any reason to deny their right to vote. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/9 "2016-12-25T04:31:25Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Sounds like many conservatives have the right idea. I’m not sure the reason you shortened the quote in this fashion but it seems to me to confuse what you are quoting. Especially as you’ve combined different paragraphs. Please do not do this again. [/ moderating] ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/10 "2016-12-25T10:38:28Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Anyway, can a democratic governor in Florida just wholesale restore voting rights to felons? The state probably would’ve went blue in 2016 had ex felons had the right to vote. So you want to gerrymander in favour of the Democrats? Think about what a Republican governor might do in return and leave well alone. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/11 "2016-12-25T12:07:03Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > So you want to gerrymander in favour of the Democrats? Think about what a Republican governor might do in return and leave well alone. Why is allowing more citizens to vote a “gerrymander”, and denying those citizens a vote not a “gerrymander”? ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/12 "2016-12-25T12:16:30Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > Why is allowing more citizens to vote a “gerrymander”, and denying those citizens a vote not a “gerrymander”? Since Quartz is not American, he probably doesn’t know the meaning of [gerrymandering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrymandering). Which was named after Governor Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts in 1812, when he redistricted Massachusetts to favor the Democratic Republicans. The Federalists created the word–when one of the new districts was thought to resemble a _salamander…_… ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2016, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/13 "2016-12-28T07:36:21Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > The party of felons? Rapists, murderers, and crackheads are really the demographic to chase? Those aren’t the only felonies on the books. It could be tax cheats, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![drewder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/14 "2017-01-04T15:45:41Z")
I’m perfectly ok with felons not being able to vote. They’ve demonstrated a supreme lack of judgement and so I don’t think we need their opinion on who should be elected. I also support a ban on felons owning guns, I have yet to hear anyone proclaim that they’ve paid their debt and should have their rights to firearm ownership restored. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/15 "2017-01-04T16:16:14Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > I also support a ban on felons owning guns, I have yet to hear anyone proclaim that they’ve paid their debt and should have their rights to firearm ownership restored. [2nd Amendment defender in Congress just helped advance a major step to restoring lost gun rights](http://ijr.com/2015/06/336151-convicted-criminals-soon-able-second-amendment-rights-restored/) > [@](#): > > While speaking about his amendment, Rep. Buck said that non-violent offenders should be offered a second chance: > > ``` > "America is a land of second chances. One mistake should not define your future. A law-abiding, 45-year-old dad who made one mistake at 18 should have the choice of how best to protect his family or to take his kids hunting. He should have the chance to make a petition to restore his constitutional right to bear arms. This solution is long overdue." > > ``` And now you have heard it. I got that link from the NRA Facebook page and the comments all seem supportive. > **[Log into Facebook](https://m.facebook.com/NationalRifleAssociation/posts/10153506293466833)** > > Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/16 "2017-01-04T17:35:47Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > I also support a ban on felons owning guns, I have yet to hear anyone proclaim that they’ve paid their debt and should have their rights to firearm ownership restored. Then I’m afraid you haven’t been paying attention. It used to be that there was a pretty strict federal ban on felons possessing firearms. However, in the late 80s, Congress loosened the rules considerably, by amending the law to say that if a state restored a felon’s right to have guns, then the federal ban was lifted automatically as well. This has created a patchwork across the country of whether a felon is banned from possessing firearms. The NRA was one of the driving forces pushing for the federal amendment. Interesting article from six years ago about it: [http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/11/14/us/felons-finding-it-easy-to-regain-gun-rights.html](http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/11/14/us/felons-finding-it-easy-to-regain-gun-rights.html) A more recent one from last spring: “NRA’s Wayne LaPierre freaks out about ex-felons voting, is fine with them carrying guns” > [@](#): > > “There’s no reason why a person who has demonstrated they are now a good citizen should be deprived of their right to own a firearm,” NRA representative Richard Gardiner told the Washington Post before the vote [last spring in the House]. “We ought to recognise that some people can change.” But in the same article, LaPierre is extremely critical of attempts to restore felon rights to vote in some states. > [@](#): > > LaPierre characterised recent attempts by Democrats in Maryland and Virginia to allow ex-offenders to vote as dangerously crooked political manoeuvres. [https://www.google.ca/amp/m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us\_573f5bd2e4b0613b512a3ead/amp?client=safari](https://www.google.ca/amp/m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_573f5bd2e4b0613b512a3ead/amp?client=safari) ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/17 "2017-01-04T18:14:55Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > They’ve demonstrated a supreme lack of judgement and so I don’t think we need their opinion on who should be elected. One could use the exact same reasoning to deny votes to the poor, or the uneducated, anyone who has ever declared bankruptcy, etc. Would you be OK with that too? ---
**Author:** ![Translucent\_Daydream](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/translucent_daydream/32/16170_2.png) [@Translucent\_Daydream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Translucent_Daydream)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/18 "2017-01-04T18:50:15Z")
I know a “felon” that is a felon for taking a whiz on an exit on interstate 30 in the pine trees way outside New Boston, Texas at 3 AM in the morning on a Tuesday when he was 19, 15 years ago. He is also a “registered sex offender”. I know another “felon” that was a guy that’s crackhead older brother used his spare coat in the trunk of his car as a storage place for the coke he was selling. Me thinks the term “felon” is the problem here. ---
**Author:** ![drewder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/19 "2017-01-04T21:22:21Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > One could use the exact same reasoning to deny votes to the poor, or the uneducated, anyone who has ever declared bankruptcy, etc. Would you be OK with that too? You can’t tell the difference between those groups? You act like the only difference between a felon and a normal citizen is random chance. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551/20 "2017-01-04T21:43:24Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > You can’t tell the difference between those groups? You act like the only difference between a felon and a normal citizen is random chance. No, I’m just saying, if felons shouldn’t be allowed to vote _because it is an indication of “a supreme lack of judgement”_, then we can think of other groups that one could argue also lack judgment. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-a-democratic-governor-in-florida-restore-felons-voting-rights/775551.md?page=2)