Statewide Iowa — (RI) — Iowa is the only state that still bans all people with felony convictions from voting unless they appeal to the governor, but voting rights advocates say some paroled inmates mistakenly think they’re not allowed to vote when they’ve been convicted of lesser crimes.
Campaign Legal Center attorney Blair Bowie is urging Governor Kim Reynolds to issue an executive order and automatically restore felon voting rights, while continuing to push for a constitutional amendment to make the change permanent.
A year ago, Republican Governor Kim Reynolds asked legislators to start the lengthy process of trying to amend the state constitution to automatically restore felon voting rights, but the proposal stalled in the Republican-led Iowa Senate. The Reynolds administration has simplified the application process for felons seeking restoration of their voting rights, but there’s now a three-to-four-month wait as a handful of state employees check the applications for accuracy. Ashley Caldwell is with Restore Your Vote Iowa, a group that’s helping felons with the paperwork.
Iowa Public Radio recently spoke with Travis Fugere, who applied in November to have his voting rights restored.
A 2008 drug conviction landed Fugere in prison for a little less than two years. He’s now the manager of a central Iowa fast food restaurant and leading a recovery group at his church after being sober for 12 years.
Fugere says he’s just waiting now to see if he can participate in the Iowa Caucuses, which are less than a month away.
