Nebraska Supreme Court says felons can legally vote after completing their sentences, uses "Simpsons" reference in its ruling
· Oct 16, 2024 · NottheBee.com

The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that felons can vote once they've paid their debt to society.

The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled that convicted felons who served their sentences are allowed to vote, after the state's top election official sought to keep them from casting ballots ahead of the Nov. 5 election …

Earlier this year, state legislators voted on a bipartisan basis to eliminate the two-year waiting period. Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers later argued that only the state's board of pardons could restore voting rights, and Nebraska Secretary of State Robert Evnen ordered local registrars to stop letting all people with previous felony convictions vote, arguing the laws enfranchising them were unconstitutional.

On Wednesday, Nebraska's top court disagreed, writing that state officials had not convinced them the law, known as L.B. 20, was unconstitutional.

Turns out, you can't just say L.B. 20 is unconstitutional and then ignore it.

And check this out: The Supreme Court used a Simpsons reference in their ruling:

Patty and Selma at the Department of Motor Vehicles may not be constitutional scholars, but they know that they are expected to follow the law.

So if you're a felon in Nebraska who's completed your sentence, then I guess it's time to get out and vote!

I'll leave you with some info on how states treat felon voters:

  • In the District of Columbia, Maine and Vermont, felons never lose their right to vote, even while they are incarcerated.

  • In 23 states, felons lose their voting rights only while incarcerated, and receive automatic restoration upon release. Note that in Maryland, convictions for buying or selling votes can only be restored through pardon.

  • In 15 states, felons lose their voting rights during incarceration, and for a period of time after, typically while on parole and/or probation. Voting rights are automatically restored after this time period. Former felons may also have to pay any outstanding fines, fees or restitution before their rights are restored.

  • In 10 states, felons lose their voting rights indefinitely for some crimes, or require a governor's pardon for voting rights to be restored, face an additional waiting period after completion of sentence (including parole and probation) or require additional action before voting rights can be restored. These states are listed in the fourth category on Table 1. Details on these states are found in Table 2 below.

No word yet on whether these rules apply to the 425,000 convicted criminal "migrants" that are totally not gonna vote in this election.


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