“I voted for President 1st time ever! I did something good!” 

I read this note from a Washington, DC voter in federal prison yesterday as millions of Americans joined him in exercising their civic duty. The Sentencing Project successfully led advocacy efforts in the District of Columbia this year to end all exclusions on voting based on a felony conviction. The fruits of that labor are reflected in this proud message.

In 2020 and beyond The Sentencing Project is recommitting to the fundamentals of democracy – one person, one vote.  

One of the key strategies The Sentencing Project uses to support the right to vote is exposing the way the criminal justice system undermines both voting rights and democracy in this country. We just released, Locked Out 2020: Estimates of People Denied Voting Rights Due to a Felony Conviction. The nationwide report found over 5 million Americans were shut out of our democracy because of a felony this year; and a stunning 1 in every 16 Black Americans is impacted.

We are also proud to support state reforms that chip away at these totals, including in California which last night passed Proposition 17 to restore voting rights to people on parole.

Please join us in this effort to remove all barriers to voting and to ensure that our democracy grows stronger in the future.  You can support this effort by Donating here.  

We cannot have a thriving democracy when so many citizens are denied the right to vote! We cannot have a thriving democracy when laws systematically target certain populations for disenfranchisement! And we cannot have a thriving democracy unless we care enough to ensure that every voter has ready access to the ballot box and every vote counts! 

Please join The Sentencing Project in this critical effort to make our democracy work for all of us!

Onwards!

Amy