Under what circumstances should felons be allowed to vote?

Joe Geronimo Martinez is correct in noting that felony disenfranchisement is primarily an American (and to a lesser degree British) practice*. In most other countries, voting is seen as a duty not a privilege (in some, such as Belgium and Australia, it is mandatory). A willingness to vote is seen as a sign of engaging with and accepting the rules of society, and European prisons often encourage inmates to vote. Disenfranchisement meanwhile is viewed as marginalization rather than punishment.

Voting also permits prisoners imprisoned for laws that they view as unjust to democratically protest against those laws (while still being punished for breaking them); it's worth remembering that sodomy and miscegenation were both felonies once.

Update: also what Brian Bi said.

* The US is certainly a world leader, with 1 in 40 of potential voters disenfranchised, including 1 in 12 African Americans. In Florida, the numbers are 1 in 10 and 1 in 5 respectively, while Maine and Vermont are the only states without felony disenfranchisement.

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