Virginia Gov. Spanberger has restored voting rights for 66,000 people with past felony convictions

Key Points:

• Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has restored voting rights to 66,085 people with past felony convictions, reversing the limited restorations made by former Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who restored rights for fewer than 10,000 individuals during his four-year term.
• This move contrasts with previous governors from both parties who restored voting rights to over 300,000 formerly incarcerated Virginians since 2013, highlighting a significant shift in the state's approach to felony disenfranchisement.
• Under Virginia's constitution, people convicted of felonies are banned from voting and holding public office, with rights restoration dependent on the governor's discretion; this policy was one of the most restrictive in the U.S. until a federal court struck down the ban in January.
• Nationally, about four million people remain disenfranchised due to felony convictions, with experts noting the laws disproportionately affect African Americans, who are more likely to be wrongfully convicted and thus face racial discrimination through felony disenfranchisement.
• Activists argue that felony disenfranchisement serves as a form of voter suppression targeting Democratic-leaning racial minorities, further exacerbating racial inequalities in the U.S. criminal justice and electoral systems.