Northam Restores Voting, Other Rights To 69,000 Virginians

RICHMOND, VA — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that he is taking executive action to restore voting and other civil rights to people convicted of felonies as soon as they complete their prison terms.

The action will immediately apply to more than 69,000 formerly incarcerated Virginians, the governor’s office said. Going forward, any Virginian released from incarceration will qualify to have their rights restored, even if they remain on probation or parole.

“Too many of our laws were written during a time of open racism and discrimination, and they still bear the traces of inequity,” Northam said Tuesday in a statement. “We are a Commonwealth that believes in moving forward, not being tied down by the mistakes of our past. If we want people to return to our communities and participate in society, we must welcome them back fully — and this policy does just that.”

Under current law in Virginia, anyone convicted of a felony loses many rights, including the right to vote, serve on juries, or run for public office. The state Constitution gives the governor the sole power to restore most of those civil rights.

The state's policy previously required former felons to finish serving "active supervision," including probation or parole, before they were eligible to have their rights restored by the governor. Northam's move means Virginians who have been released from prison but still remain on probation or parole now are eligible to vote.

Northam has restored civil rights, including voting rights, to more than 111,000 people since he took office, his office said.

Northam’s predecessor, Terry McAuliffe, restored voting rights to 173,000 Virginians during his term as governor. McAuliffe is running for a second term as governor in this year's election.

In 2016, Republican lawmakers convinced the state Supreme Court to bar McAuliffe from restoring the rights en masse, so he signed them one by one.

"Standing up against relentless Republican opposition and restoring voting rights to 173,000 Virginians is one of the proudest accomplishments of my life, but there remains much work to be done," McAuliffe said Tuesday in a statement commending Northam's action. "We must fully enshrine the restoration of voting rights in our constitution, and as Virginia's next governor I pledge to work with the General Assembly and voters to complete this process during my first year in office."

Sean Perryman, who is running for lieutenant governor of Virginia, also welcomed Northam's executive action. It comes “at a time when voting rights are being threatened across the country,” Perryman said Tuesday in a statement.

“We need to build on this action and pass legislation that amends Virginia’s constitution to ensure no Virginian ever loses their right to vote,” he added. “We know too much about how mass incarceration targets Black, brown, and low-income people to pretend that the disenfranchisement of the incarcerated is a fair policy. The right to vote should be a guarantee that can’t be taken away.”

Under current law, anyone convicted of a felony in Virginia loses the right to vote, serve on a jury, run for office, become a public notary, and carry a firearm. Virginia remains one of the three states in the nation whose constitution permanently disenfranchises citizens with past felony convictions, but gives the governor the sole discretion to restore civil rights, excluding firearm rights.

In 18 states, people convicted of felonies receive automatic restoration of voting rights as soon as they are released from prison, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In Maine, Vermont and Washington, D.C., people convicted of felonies never lose their voting rights, even when they are behind bars.

During the 2021 General Assembly session, legislators approved a constitutional amendment that affirms the fundamental right to vote and automatically restores the civil rights of any person, upon completion of their sentence of incarceration. The constitutional amendment has to be passed again by the General Assembly in 2022 before going to a voter referendum.

"All Virginians deserve to have their voices heard, and these changes demonstrate the Northam Administration’s continued commitment to second chances, rehabilitation, and restorative justice," Virginia Secretary of the Commonwealth Kelly Thomasson said in a statement.