New Report: Nebraska Should Restore Voting Rights to Over 10,000 People Impacted by the Criminal Legal System
Over 10,000 of Nebraska’s citizens are banned from voting because they are incarcerated for a felony, on felony probation, or released on parole.
Related to: Voting Rights
Washington, DC – The Sentencing Project released a new report today arguing that Nebraska should restore voting rights to the more than 10,000 Nebraska citizens who are banned from voting because they are incarcerated for a felony, on felony probation, or released on parole.
The report notes that nearly half of these Nebraskans who have been stripped of their right to vote are living in their community. It also finds that people of color are more likely to be prohibited from voting because of the stark racial disparities in Nebraska’s criminal legal system.
“Excluding an entire population of people from exercising their right to vote erodes democracy and is not in accordance with Nebraska’s bill of rights,” said Kristen Budd, Research Analyst with The Sentencing Project and co-author of the report. “When the state of Nebraska takes away its citizens’ ability to vote, it also removes an important avenue for them, especially for people of color, to advocate for their own needs and the needs of their communities. Nebraska should strengthen its democracy and advance racial justice by re-enfranchising its entire voting eligible population.”
The new report notes that expanding voting rights can be an effective public safety strategy by facilitating successful re-entry and reducing recidivism. Research shows that an opportunity to participate in democracy has the potential to reduce one’s perceived status as an “outsider.” The act of voting can have a meaningful and sustaining positive influence on justice-impacted citizens by making them feel they belong to a community.
“In July 2024, the Nebraska legislature enacted Legislative Bill 20, legislation restoring voting rights to 7,000 people in Nebraska who have already completed their full sentences,” said Demetrius Gatson, Founder of Q.U.E.E.N.S. Butterfly House in Omaha, Nebraska. “Now, Nebraska should carry forward this momentum and extend voting rights to all of its citizens, including those who are incarcerated for a felony, on felony probation, or released on parole.”
The full report can be found here.
About The Sentencing Project
The Sentencing Project advocates for effective and humane responses to crime that minimize imprisonment and criminalization of youth and adults by promoting racial, ethnic, economic, and gender justice. www.sentencingproject.org
About Q.U.E.E.N.S. Butterfly House
Founded in 2023, Nebraska’s Queens Butterfly House is on a Quest to Understand, Educate, and Empower Noble Sistahs (the underserved, formerly incarcerated women population) to thrive through healthy relationships, collaborative communities, supportive housing, job readiness, and personal development to becoming the best version of themselves. https://queensbutterfly.org
