Felon Disenfranchisement

[Belsnickel]

(04-19-2018, 10:26 PM)Sociopathicsteelerfan Wrote: I would say that I don't think many/most parolees would exercise that right.  However, you make an excellent point, I'm honestly reconsidering my position.

Some of the research indicates that one reason many don't when they are eligible to is because they don't know they can. There is also some research indicating that formerly incarcerated felons may be more politically active than we tend to realize, at least those that are actually seeking to change their ways and be rehabilitated.

The research that has a bit more meat behind it is showing us, though, that those out of prison, whether entirely done with their sentence or under supervision, are much less likely to reintegrate into society if they remain disenfranchised. Ethnographic data points to the idea that even if they don't vote, the inability to do so causes them to feel excluded from society. It leads to a fatalistic mindset about their future. The combination of these two things, exclusion and fatalism, increases the risk of them re-offending.

It's a very interesting topic to dig into.