For Immediate Release
June 23, 2021
Today Governor Ned Lamont signed SB 1201, a bill that restores voting rights to people on parole. With the governor’s signature, Connecticut joins 19 other states that automatically restore voting rights to people upon their release from prison.
Eliza Sweren-Becker, counsel in the Voting Rights and Elections Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, had the following comment:
“This is a terrific day for democracy in Connecticut. The bill the governor signed corrects a longstanding injustice. Although they live and work in the state, the roughly 4,000 people on parole in Connecticut were prohibited from voting. Now they will be able to participate fully as citizens in the decisions that affect them and their families.
“Because of racial inequities in Connecticut’s criminal legal system, the ban on voting disproportionately impacted people of color. By ending the ban, the new law is a step towards racial justice.”
More information on rights restoration efforts in Connecticut is here.
More information on rights restoration nationwide is here.
