Evan McGinnis, Intern, and Jessica Leval and Jennifer Marsico, Research Assistants, AEI-Brookings Election Reform Project

November 19, 2008

As voter registration drives geared up in preparation for the 2008 presidential election, efforts to register voters also turned towards oft-forgotten groups such as the homeless and ex-felons. Attempts to mobilize these potential voters highlighted the many difficulties facing these populations as they strive to make their voices heard in U.S. elections.

The National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) estimates that there are roughly 744,000 homeless people in America, and approximately one-third of these individuals are registered voters. Federal law permits homeless individuals to register to vote anywhere in the country, though each state has varying voting procedures and requirements.

Usually, individuals must list a permanent address on the voter registration form, and provide some type of identification, either when registering or when actually voting for the first time. For homeless individuals, however, the process often becomes more difficult, since these individuals usually lack permanent addresses and often do not have the required forms of personal identification.

The vast majority of states require a mailing address in order to issue a voter registration card, but some states have taken special measures to accommodate homeless individuals. For example, Florida, Maryland, and West Virginia permit homeless individuals to register by providing a street corner or even a park bench as their "permanent" address. In the ten other states that permit registration with unconventional addresses, homeless individuals can also supply any address that is willing to hold mail for them, such as a local shelter or outreach center. A variety of organizations have sought to take advantage of these policies; in late September 2008, the National Coalition for the Homeless, hosted the "National Homeless and Low-Income Voter Registration Week." Other non-profit groups, including the National Alliance to End Homelessness, the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, and the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, have also worked together to host voter registration drives in homeless shelters and soup kitchens.

While at first glance this may appear to make the registration process more accessible to homeless voters, this is often not the case in practice. Unless homeless individuals are in frequent contact with the types of organizations they list as their "permanent" addresses, they might fail to receive important registration-related materials. Colorado state law, for example, requires counties to send voter confirmation letters to new registrants. Should these letters be returned unopened to the sender, the registrants' addresses will be deemed invalid and these individuals' registration will be terminated. To make matters worse, though state-issued voter identification cards can be used to satisfy many states' identification requirements, receipt of the cards also requires reliable mail service.

Like the homeless, numerous obstacles complicate the voter registration process for ex-felons. Once convicted, felons may have their voting rights revoked by the state. Upon completion of a prison sentence and re-entry into their communities, ex-felons face a variety of difficulties associated with the "re-enfranchising" process.

Requirements regarding the reinstatement of ex-felons' voting rights vary by state. Only Maine and Vermont guarantee voting rights to all people regardless of criminal records, even allowing prisoners behind bars to vote. In states like Ohio and Hawaii, ex-felons can have their voting rights automatically restored following the completion of their prison sentences. In California and New York, however, ex-felons must wait until they have not only successfully completed their prison terms, but also their parole before having their rights reinstated. Maryland and Texas have even more stringent requirements, only allowing ex-felons to be re-enfranchised following the completion of their prison terms, parole, and probation.

In other states, the laws regarding ex-felon voting are even harsher, as individuals who commit a felony automatically forfeit their right to vote. In Virginia and Kentucky, in order to vote, ex-felons must have had their voting rights restored by the governor. This leaves roughly 180,000 citizens in Kentucky and an estimated 380,000 citizens in Virginia ineligible to vote.

Since the laws regarding the re-enfranchisement of ex-felons vary by state, it is often difficult for election officials to remain informed of procedures in their respective states. In a recent study (PDF), New York University's Brennan Center found that some election officials failed to understand their state's basic rules of voter eligibility and registration procedures relating to ex-felons. This confusion often results in "de facto disenfranchisement," effectively barring all ex-felons from voting.

In an attempt to address this problem, Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) introduced "The Democracy Restoration Act of 2008" bill on September 26, 2008. This bill would, according to Feingold (PDF), "ensure that once people have served their time, their right to vote in a federal election would be restored." (This bill has been referred to the Committee on the Judiciary and is awaiting further review).

Both the homeless and ex-felons face numerous obstacles to voting, which are often exacerbated by varying state requirements and the resulting confusion among advocates and election officials. It is important for election reform researchers to look into new ways of improving the flow of correct information to both election officials and those often deemed to be on the margins of society.

Jessica Leval can be reached at jessica.leval@aei.org. Jennifer Marsico can be reached at jennifer.marsico@aei.org.

Viewpoint is an occasional feature analyzing various election reform issues.