Iowa Governor Issues Order to Restore Voting Rights
I
had intended to post this earlier in the week, so many of you may
already be well aware of this but I think it deserves another mention.
Don't forget to send a thank you out to Governor Vilsack as well as the
other State Reps who were involved with this effort.
It's about time… Out of all 50
states, Iowa is one of only four states that do not allow ex-felons who
have done their time the opportunity to re-connect to society in a
more positive way by restoring their voting rights. It is my understanding that those who do vote and likewise engage in civic duties are less likely to be repeat offenders.
The day of this announcement, I was
surfing through the channels checking to see what kind of noise this
was generating… I stumbled upon Tucker Carlson on MSNBC framing
the issue as “Do Ex-Felons Possess The Judgement to be Allowed to Vote?”
Unreal…
Thank you Governor Vilsack and Friends!
From: Marty Ryan – ICLU Legislative Director
ICLU Legislative Program
<contactlegisprogram@iowaclu.org>
On
Friday, June 17, Governor Tom Vilsack held a press conference in which
he announced that he will be signing an executive order on July 4th,
Independence Day, which will restore the right to vote to thousands of
ex-felons in Iowa.
You can
go to the governor's site and listen to the press conference that
features ICLU Executive Director Ben Stone in the background.
http://www.governor.state.ia.us/
The link
above will bring you to the governor's home page and you can
“Watch the press conference” from beginning to end. Governor Vilsack
specifically thanked Representatives
Scott Raecker (R-Urbandale), Jeff Elgin (R-Cedar Rapids), Vicki Lensing
(D-Iowa City), and Wayne Ford (D-Des Moines).
He also gave special thanks to Mike Cervantes, who made
severaltrips to Des Moines with his students from Metro High School in Cedar
Rapids as they took on this project with all the enthusiasm many of us
professional lobbyists could only dream of having, and Stephanie
Fawkes-Lee, president of the Metro Des Moines League of Women Voters,
who relentlessly pushed several of us lobbyists and other activists when we felt the issue may have been lost.
“The right to vote in a free American election is the most powerful and precious right in the world.”
— President John F. Kennedy
“The
most basic right of all was the right to choose your own leaders. The
history of this country, in large measure, is the history of the
expansion of that right to all of our people.”
— President Lyndon B. Johnson
This is
an historic moment in Iowa. On a personal note, this is the second most
significant day in my 14 years of lobbying. Defeating a death penalty
bill in 1995, House File 2, will always be my most precious lobbying
success. And State Senator Tom Vilsack was instrumental in that civil
rights issue, as well.
I'm feeling good!
Marty Ryan
ICLU Legislative Director
Please send a “thank you.”
You can send a personal note of thanks to Representatives Raecker, Lensing, Elgin, and Ford to the following addresses:
Rep. Scott Raecker
9011 Iltis Dr.
Urbandale, IA 50322
Rep. Jeff Elgin
6940 Bowman Lane, NE
Cedra Rapids, IA 52402
Rep. Vicki Lensing
2408 Mayfield Rd.
Iowa City, IA 52245
Rep. Wayne Ford
P.O. Box 5042
Des Moines, IA 50306
And of course, Governor Vilsack:
The Honorable Tom Vilsack
Governor of Iowa
Statehouse
Des Moines, IA 50319
Blog For Iowa 