As federal and state prison populations continue to swell and the 2000 elections are fast approaching, the issue of voting rights for convicted felons has gained increasing attention from candidates and the media. With the exceptions of Maine, Vermont and Massachusetts, the remaining 46 states and the District of Columbia prohibit inmates serving felony convictions from voting in any public elections. While a majority of states restore voting rights to convicted felons after they complete their prison terms or probation periods, at least ten states, including Virginia, Delaware and New Mexico permanently prohibit former felons from voting.

The legal authority of a state to revoke an inmate's voting rights is based upon the Fourteenth Amendment. While this amendment stipulates that, "no state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States", it allows for the denying of the voting rights of individuals guilty of "participation in rebellion, or other crime". Under current law, the federal government may not infringe upon a state's authority to grant or rescind voting rights to prison inmates and former felons.

The legal disenfranchisement of inmates and former felons has come under increased scrutiny by civil rights and criminal justice groups. According to Human Rights Watch and The Sentencing Project, nearly 3.9 million people are prohibited from voting, a majority of whom are former convicts who completed their sentences. While legislation has been introduced in Congress that would allow former convicts to vote in federal elections if successful, the Supreme Court of New Hampshire ruled in March to strip incarcerated felons of all voting privileges.

On One Hand...

Assertions that the Fourteenth Amendment justifies the disenfranchisement of felons by states are dubious at best, especially when deciding what "other crimes" constitute the serious magnitude of "participation in rebellion." Disenfranchising inmates is counter to the American tradition of laboring for the expansion of voting rights for all citizens. In many states, the prohibiting of former convicts from voting has become a form of government-sanctioned discrimination against felons who have completed their restitution to society. This is especially true for African-American males who constitute a disproportionate percentage of disenfranchised former felons. Congress and state assemblies must support legislation that reverses this unconstitutional practice.

On the Other Hand...

The Fourteenth Amendment clearly demonstrates that the states have the Constitutional authority to disenfranchise both currently incarcerated and former felons for as long as they deem fit. In limiting the freedoms of convicted felons, incarceration is designed to punish inmates and impress upon them the magnitude of their crimes. As a privilege to be enjoyed by law-abiding citizens, prohibiting inmates from voting further drives this point home. Prohibiting former felons from voting for life ensures the integrity of the electoral process, especially in states and jurisdictions where the populace directly elects judges, law enforcement officers and district attorneys.

• Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, Virginia and Wyoming permanently prohibit voting rights for felons.

• According to Human Rights Watch and The Sentencing Project, "1.4 million African American men, or 13% of black men, are disenfranchised, a rate seven times the national average."

• At the conclusion of 1998, an estimated 5.9 million people were incarcerated or serving parole throughout the entire U.S. criminal justice system.

• Arizona and Maryland permanently disenfranchise felons after the conviction of a second offense.

Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice, Human Rights Watch, The Sentencing Project