People can still vote in New York jails if they are awaiting trial or if they have a misdemeanor charge.
But the process isn't easy: because there is no physical polling site at Rikers Island, voters have to request an absentee ballot, which must be picked up in person by jail staff, filled out and returned. The process results in too many ballot requests and completed ballots being rejected, advocates say. And the fact that the majority of the city’s jail population is people of color raises the stake.
"We are systematically disenfranchising Black and Latinx people, we should be really clear about that," said Rigodis Appling, a staff attorney with Legal Aid Society.
