Lawmakers Revive Effort to Automatically Restore Voting Rights for People with some Felony Convictions

Bipartisan effort to restore voting rights for Kentuckians with felonies expected in 2026

Two Kentucky senators — a Republican and a Democrat — plan to sponsor legislation in 2026 to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot with the aim of restoring voting rights to most convicted felons.

Lawmakers revive effort to automatically restore voting rights for people with some felony convictions

Two state senators are joining forces to establish automatic restoration of voting rights in Kentucky for people with certain past felony convictions, reviving legislation that stalled during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.The bipartisan effort aims to make voting rights restoration permanent through a constitutional amendment, rather than relying on executive orders that can change with each governor."It's our goal over the next couple of months…

Kentucky lawmakers discuss plans to enshrine voting rights restoration

(Ryan Van Velzer / KPR )It’s thanks to a 2019 executive order from Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear that some Kentuckians convicted of a felony are automatically able to vote after completing their sentence and parole. But a future governor could reverse that order, thus stopping the ability for Kentuckians convicted of most nonviolent felonies from automatically regaining their voting rights.Over the past several years, Democratic Rep. Keturah Herr…