The latest news on this front comes from a really interesting Business Insider article written by John Haltiwanger:

Only 15% of respondents said all prisoners — regardless of their crimes — should keep their voting rights while behind bars. Meanwhile, 20% said only voters convicted of non-violent offenses should be allowed to vote.

During a CNN town hall last Monday, the Vermont senator was asked to clarify if he supports voting rights for people like the Boston Marathon bomber or people convicted of rape. Sanders replied that even “terrible people” should be allowed to vote, contending that disenfranchising any group of people is a “slippery slope.”

Based on our poll, approximately 35% of voters are supportive of enfranchising currently incarcerated people in some capacity, but most of these people aren’t willing to go as far as Sanders.

See the full story here. At this point, those against basic felon voting rights at least for some who have criminal histories, are ignoring the basic historical facts about the origins of the legislation in America. On top of this, by making felon voting illegal they are saying they want a government policy that sends a message that even a lifetime of attempted redemption and good deeds can’t erase a past error, even a small one. The truth is that felons have as much right as any other citizen to cast votes. Denying them this right is discrimination of the first order.