For the past century, Alabama has revoked the voting rights of people who have committed crimes of moral turpitude. This term was left up to individual county registrars to interpret, which resulted in racially biased interpretation, as was decided in the 1985 Supreme Court case, Hunter v. Underwood. However, the law remained in place until 2017. Alabama passed HB282, a bill that defined what crimes constituted "moral turpitude."

FREE THE VOTE

Alabama's Felon

Disenfranchisement

Policies

Words to Know

Felon Disenfranchisement: Loss of a person's right to vote based on past or current criminal convictions

HB282: The Alabama law that lists the 46 crimes of "moral turpitude" that disqualify people with convictions from voting

CERV: Certificate of Eligibility to Register to Vote, people with disqualifying convictions must submit this to the Board of Pardons and Paroles

This video fitted for social media gives a brief overview of the law, the rights restoration process and the remaining barriers to voting for people with past convictions. This video also acknowledges efforts made by the government and advocacy groups to make voting accessible.

This interactive Thinglink details significant legislation and court decisions that have impacted people of color's right to vote, particularly focusing on the South. Some of these cases represent progress for voting rights, while others roll back voter protection measures.

72%

of otherwise eligible Alabama voters with past convictions do not know they are able to register to vote

Click the link to learn more...

The bill was created by a diverse, bipartisan committee. People with non-disqualifying convictions crimes never lose their voting rights and may vote from prison by absentee ballot. But activists say barriers to rights restoration still exist. They say the Secretary of State should inform people that they may be able to vote. The requirement to repay court costs and fines acts as a ""modern day poll tax" for people returning from prison, too. Additionally, the list of "crimes of moral turpitude" excludes white-collar crimes, such as embezzlement, so the bill may still disenfranchise more people of color.

In this package, I talk about the history of voting rights for oppressed groups in Alabama. I got to chat with Selma Jubilee participants about why voting is so important, especially for people coming out of prison.

This package summarizes the history of felony disenfranchisement in Alabama from 1901 to today. I spoke with lawmakers an activists about the new law passed in 2017 and barriers that still exist to restoring voting rights

This bill corrected inconsistencies that disproportionately disenfranchised black Alabamians by creating a standardized list of crimes that disqualify people from voting until they have served their time, paid their fines and court fees, and re-registered. If a person is convicted of a crime that is not on the list of "crimes of moral turpitude," they never lose their right to vote. But voting rights activists say that many people who are now eligible to vote again are unaware because there was not a statewide direct contact campaign by the Secretary of State's office to make contact with people whose voting rights status had changed.