What's more, if all U.S. felons -- in and out of prison -- had been allowed to vote, Gore might have carried the nation by more than 1 million votes.
Disenfranchised felons make up more than 2% of the voting age population -- exceeding the margin of victory in four of the last 11 presidential elections.
Indeed, our research suggests that several Senate elections, and possibly partisan control of the Senate in the 1980s and again in the 1990s, hinged on the disenfranchisement of felons.
Although felons remain disenfranchised in 48 states during the time they are in prison, the recent trend has been toward re-enfranchisement once they are out. Since 1947, 23 states have repealed disenfranchisement altogether for those felons who have served their time.
It is undeniable that voting embodies participation as a law-abiding stakeholder in society. Our research suggests that when felons are allowed to vote and participate as citizens, it encourages them to avoid further criminal conduct. In a national survey we conducted, 80% of Americans favored re-enfranchising felons who have served their sentences. Only 31%, however, supported re-enfranchising inmates.
Removing the extreme voting bans on felons who have served their terms would thus be consistent with public opinion, international practices and correctional efforts to reintegrate criminal offenders into society.
