Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA) in Hot Water with Black Leaders Over Restoring Voting Rights to Nonviolent Felons

Gov. Bob McDonnell in hot water over requesting essay from nonviolent convicted felons to restore voting rights.

Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA) is in hot waters with black leaders and civil rights groups again and this time it has to do with a ridiculous addition of another step for nonviolent felons to have their voting rights restored. He is now requesting that they write an essay outlining their contributions to society since their release as part of the process. So, is his administration going to hire people to read these essays? This is an insult and amounts to nothing more than another roadblock aimed squarely at poor, less-educated and black residents of his state. So, if you are semi-literate, then you will be doomed because you can't write properly. So, if you a convicted felon in Virginia and have served your time, you may be forced to get someone to write the essay for you, which means it won't be 100% true or you could be forced to pay for legal counsel, that you may not be able to afford. So, in essence, due to the inane requirement by the governor, your rights may not be restored after all.

If you do the time and pay your debt to society for a non-violent offense and you have not re-offended, then what is the problem? Another roadblock from the party of NO. According to the Washington Post, the excuse from McDonnell's administration is that the essay requirement is designed to put a human face on each applicant and to help staff members better understand each person's situation. Really? Who's going to pay for the extra manpower to read these essays? They also claim that the new procedure being put in place would speed up the application process to 90 days instead of the 12 months it took under his Republican and Democratic predecessors. I can't see how that will be possible with the extra step he is proposing.

Under Virginia law, people who are convicted of a felony automatically lose the right to vote, serve on a jury and own a gun. According to the Washington Post, about 300,000 felons who have served their time do not have those rights, which the governor can restore if they have redeemed themselves. As it stands right now, Virginia and Kentucky are the only two states that require an act of the governor to restore voting rights to felons. The vast majority of states automatically restore voting rights after a sentence is completed, while the District of Columbia allows felons to vote upon their release from prison. This is a deliberate move on the part of a Republican governor to prevent people, who most likely would vote Democratic, to block the restoration of their rights.


READ MORE:  McDonnell in hot water over nonviolent felons' rights | Washington Post