A divided U. S. Supreme Court on Thursday said Florida can enforce a law barring ex-felons from voting if they still owe court fines or fees that they are unable to pay associated with their convictions.
MIAMI (CBSMiami/CNN) — A divided U. S. Supreme Court on Thursday said Florida can enforce a law barring ex-felons from voting if they still owe court fines or fees that they are unable to pay associated with their convictions.
The decision makes it unlikely that they will be allowed to cast a ballot in the state’s primary on August 18, and possibly in November’s crucial presidential election. However, the court did not declare the law to be unconstitutional or limit ongoing court challenges.
“This Court’s order prevents thousands of otherwise eligible voters from participating in Florida’s primary election simply because they are poor,” Sotomayor wrote in the dissent.
Over 1 million Floridians with prior felony convictions had their voting rights restored with a constitutional amendment passed in November 2018. Amendment 4, which allowed convicted felons who complete “all terms of sentence” the right to vote, passed with nearly 65% of the vote, exceeding the 60% threshold required.
