On July 24, identical bills were introduced in both Houses of Congress to require the states to let ex-felons vote in federal elections. They are HR 3335 and S1516. They provide, “The right of an individual who is a citizen of the United States to vote in any election for Federal office shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has been convicted of a criminal offense unless such individual is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution or facility at the time of the election.”

S1516 is sponsored by Senator Russell Feingold (D-Wisconsin) and has two co-sponsors. HR 3335 is sponsored by Congressmember John Conyers (D-Michigan) and has 28 co-sponsors.

There are three major groups of competent adult U.S. citizens who are frequently denied the free exercise of the vote: (1) felons and ex-felons; (2) residents of the District of Columbia and the territories; (3) members of minor parties and supporters of independent candidates. The harm to voting rights to any of these three groups tends to bolster the harm to the other groups as well. Deprivation of voting rights of one type excuses the deprivation of voting rights of other types.

Therefore, it is fitting that Congressman John Conyers, who introduced bills to outlaw restrictive ballot access laws affecting minor party and independent candidates repeatedly in the 1980’s, is the lead sponsor of HR 3335. Thanks to ElectionLawBlog for the news about these bills.