Crist Would Let All Felons Vote

By WILLIAM MARCH The Tampa Tribune

Published: Oct 14, 2006

TAMPA - Charlie Crist said Friday he favors automatic restoration of voting rights for felons who have completed their sentences, an issue that has been controversial in Florida since the 2000 election.

That's a switch for Crist, the Republican candidate for governor. A month ago, he said he favored streamlining the process for restoring voting rights but didn't call for automatic restoration of rights.

Crist said at the time that he favored continuing a system in which the state clemency board reviews requests for restoration of rights.

In a meeting with The Tampa Tribune editorial board Friday, however, Crist said, "I think the time has come in our state that we look for automatic renewal of those rights.

"If you're a fair-minded person and you truly believe in the concept that an individual pays their debt to society, … then if they've paid their debt to society, they've paid it."

Crist said the same reasoning doesn't apply to restoring the right to own firearms. "I think that has to be more thoroughly reviewed, and it would depend on the crime committed."

Crist's Democratic opponent, Jim Davis, has said throughout the campaign that he favors automatic restoration of voting rights for felons who have completed their sentences and probation and paid any court-ordered restitution.

Civil Rights Issue

Crist, who has sought during his campaign to portray himself as a civil rights leader, made his comments during a discussion of compensation for prisoners found to be wrongly convicted and imprisoned.

"I've been very aggressive, working hard in the area of civil rights," he said. "It's a passion for me - not only those who have been wrongly accused and wrongly incarcerated, but those who have now paid their debt to society and are now free, their right to now vote."

Davis campaign spokesman Josh Earnest said Crist is merely undergoing an election-year conversion. Crist didn't advocate automatic restoration of rights while sitting for the past four years as a member of the Florida Cabinet, which also functions as the state Clemency Board, Earnest said.

"He sat idly by while thousands of Floridians waited for justice," Earnest said, accusing Crist of "looking to take maximum political advantage of a situation that's very serious for thousands of Floridians."

Crist said Florida is "one of a very few states that still have this process that has a regrettably large backlog."

Only two other states routinely disenfranchise all felons who have completed their sentences. Nine others disenfranchise some categories of offenders or require waiting periods to reapply for voting rights.

According to The Sentencing Project, more than 950,000 Floridians - including more than 200,000 blacks - are disqualified from voting by the policy.

Restoration Can Take Years

Florida's rights restoration procedure - requiring an application and in many cases a hearing before the state Cabinet - can take years.

Some people found guilty of lesser offenses can apply and have their rights restored without a hearing before the Cabinet, but the required investigation can take years, said Muslima Lewis, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union in Florida.

Citing figures from a state report, Lewis said the backlog of applicants has been increasing - from about 7,200 to 13,329 as of February - and a typical investigation took 22 months.

But changing the process might not be simple.

The Florida Constitution requires that those convicted of a felony lose the right to vote and run for office, unless they are granted clemency. Changing that would require a constitutional amendment, Lewis said.

Short of that, she said, the state Cabinet could change the clemency rules and procedures to make rights restoration automatic for any felon who files an application to seek it.

The Cabinet consists of the governor, agriculture commissioner, chief financial officer and attorney general, who, currently, is Crist.

In September, in response to a questionnaire from the Tribune on civil rights issues, Crist said he supported a bill in the spring requiring county jails to give inmates applications for rights restoration when they're released.

"The Florida Clemency Board must be able to review requests for the restoration of rights," he said.

The Crist campaign didn't respond to requests for clarification Friday about which approach Crist would prefer - a constitutional amendment or a rule change - or about what caused his apparent change of heart.

Reporter William March can be reached at (813) 259-7761 or wmarch@tampatrib.com.