To: The Kentucky State House and The Kentucky State Senate
Demand Voting Rights in Kentucky!
Petition to KY Legislature: Kentucky’s newly elected Gov. Matt Bevin just revoked an executive order that would have restored voting rights to 140,000 individuals with previous convictions. Restore voting rights to individuals with previous convictions.
Why is this important?
If you live in Kentucky, last month you heard some welcome news. If you had a previous felony conviction and served your time you were about to regain your right to vote thanks to an executive order by the outgoing Governor Steve Beshear. That all changed when the new Governor, Matt Bevin, rescinded that executive order, snatching away the promise of restoring the vote.
This now means that 140,000 people who are out of prison, living in the community, paying taxes and raising families, remain disfranchised for life. We cannot call on individuals to resume responsibility of citizenship without returning to them their fundamental constitutional rights.
One in 5 African Americans in Kentucky have previous convictions, which means that 1 in 5 African Americans in Kentucky are not only unable to vote, but they are also not allowed to serve on a jury or run for office. Preventing individuals from having their voices heard in our democracy, preventing them from representation and the opportunity to represent themselves is a terrible policy.
Let Kentucky’s legislators know that - when it comes to democracy - all eyes are on them. When the legislative session starts in January, they have the power to make good on a lost promise; they can act to restore the right to vote for thousands of participating citizens in their state.