Support Proposition 17 to Free the Vote in California
By Chauncee Smith, Research and Policy Analyst
Denying the right to vote to people returning home from prison is a stain on our democracy that arises from colonial-era efforts to diminish the political power of communities of color. Specifically, since 1849, the California Constitution has prohibited people who have a felony conviction from voting, even if they are no longer incarcerated.
Because of decades of racially biased mass incarceration, today, three out of four people who leave California prisons are Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian, or Pacific Islander. As a result, they are locked out of the voting booth. This form of voter suppression not only harms the formerly incarcerated but also their families and communities whose political power is diminished for generations.
We can’t have an elected government that represents all of us when some community members are unfairly excluded from our elections and denied the ability to participate in our democracy.
Proposition 17 will amend the California Constitution and restore voting rights to Californians returning home from prison. With its passage, nearly 50,000 Californians who have completed their prison terms, returned home, raised families, held jobs, paid taxes, and contributed to society will have a say when it comes to the representatives and policies impacting their communities.
Contact Chauncee Smith, Research and Policy Analyst, for more information.
This November, Californians will consider a set of ballot measures that could reshape our state into a more just and equitable society for generations to come. Here are our endorsements, offered to help move California into that better tomorrow:
- Supporting Proposition 15 (Schools and Communities First)
- Supporting Proposition 16 (Repeal Proposition 209 Affirmative Action Amendment)
- Supporting Proposition 17 (Voting Rights Restoration for Persons on Parole Amendment)
- Supporting Proposition 18 (Primary Voting for 17-Year-Olds Amendment)
- Opposing Proposition 20 (Criminal Sentencing, Parole, and DNA Collection Initiative)
- Supporting Proposition 21 (Local Rent Control Initiative)
- Supporting L.A. County Measure J (Reimagine L.A.)