Election Time

Today is election day.

So does anyone ever wonder who gets to go vote?

The credentials I know of:

-You HAVE to be a U.S. citizen

-You HAVE to be eighteen-years-old

-You HAVE to be a resident of that state (if voting in a certain state)

-You CANNOT be convicted of a felony

Personally, I understand that these rules for voting have been in place for a long time, but I find that the last "well-known" credential to potentially be an ethical dilemma.

Should convicted felons be allowed to vote in the United States? A few months ago I was reading an article on this issue, and unfortunately I do not remember where it was from. Luckily, this is a topic that is controversial and draws attention to not only this election, but years past.

The three sites/articles I looked at were Pro/Con: Felon Voting, an NPR story from yesterday, and an article from Congress.org.

A lot of the issues involved with letting or not letting a felon vote may be opinion. So whether it is right to let felons have the right to vote, or whether it is right to not let the felons vote.

One interesting fact on the NPR story is "A new study by the Sentencing Project shows that some 800,000 people with felony convictions have been given the right to vote over the past decade, thanks to reforms to laws governing eligibility in 23 states. But at least 5.3 million felons of voting age remain disenfranchised." That fact was really eye opening to me. That in 23 states felons were given the right to vote but not the other 27? That is almost split 50/50.

Personally, I just wanted to raise this ethical dilemma (minus the law issue involving the states).

Is it right to allow felons to vote or is it right for felons not to vote?

I discussed the issue over dinner with my parents and because the topic of elections and voting is so sensitive I will not reveal what "right" decision we came to after our 45 minute discussion, but I would like to point out some of the stakeholders.

YOU (the average voter), the individuals running for election, the citizens who may be awaiting trial/mid-trial/post trial for felonies, anyone that works with a prison that would need to deal with the convicted felon's ballots, board of elections, and the government.

I believe everyone WILL have an opinion on this issue, but perhaps after rationally finding the ethical dilemma and weighing the two sides you can find what you believe is the best "right" decision.