Momentum builds to let people vote while on parole
SEATTLE — As a young man Victor Sauceda didn’t care about who was president, about who was governor, about voting at all. He wasn’t living by the law anyway.
But after serving eight years in prison for burglary and fencing stolen property, during which he learned computer coding and had a political awakening, he cares. And cases like his have prompted advocates in Washington to redouble their efforts to restore voting rights to people who are out on community supervision after serving prison time, as California voters did during last month’s election.
“It really does something to me mentally that I don’t have the power to vote,” Sauceda said. “We served our prison term when we were incarcerated. For society to reject us right when we come out, to say you’re not good enough to vote, it’s not a good feeling.”
Washington has been a leader in other efforts to expand the franchise. It’s one of just five states with universal vote-by-mail. Last year, it began allowing 16- and 17year-olds to pre-register to vote, allowing citizens to register as late as Election Day and automatically registering citizens to vote when they interact with state agencies.
But unlike 19 other states, Washington does not allow people convicted of many felonies to vote while they’re out of prison but still under Department of Corrections supervision — a period that can last up to three years for violent crimes, during which they often live with friends or family, hold jobs, and check in regularly with a parole officer. Instead, their voting rights are restored when they’ve completed their time in custody and on supervision.
Despite support from the Department of Corrections, the Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys and the Attorney General’s Office, a Democrat-sponsored bill to let people vote while on parole stalled in the state Senate early this year in light of opposition from Republicans who wanted to exempt people convicted of certain crimes, including gang-related gun charges and assaults on police.