Colorado to offer in-person voting behind bars in November

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signed a bill Friday directing election officials to bring voting services to detention centers and county jails for the state’s general election.

The state program is the first of its kind, as only one handful of prisons across the country currently offer in-person voting for eligible residents.

Implementation of the measure will make about 61 prisons and detention centers across Colorado offer in-person voting for the November election, according to Jack Todd, a spokesman for the Colorado Secretary of State.

Although Colorado bars those serving time for felony convictions from voting, it is legal for incarcerated individuals awaiting trial or serving time for misdemeanors to vote in the state.

State Sen. Julie Gonzales, a Democrat who sponsored the bill, said lawmakers found that eligible voters typically didn’t vote due to logistical hurdles behind bars.

“In Colorado, we really pride ourselves on our gold star election system,” Gonzales said. “Still, we realized there was a group of individuals who were unable to fully access the ballot.”

The law requires law enforcement and election authorities to provide six hours of in-person voting and services that enable confined individuals to register to vote. There will also be a way for eligible voters to return ballots by mail if they prefer to vote that way.

County employees will serve as election officials, and the legislation also ensures that election officials have access to Department of Corrections data to ensure that those serving time for felony convictions cannot vote.

Restoring voting rights to the millions of Americans with felony convictions who have served their sentences has been a popular policy proposal in recent years, but very few states have taken steps to encourage political involvement behind bars.

Voting from behind bars can be difficult, voting rights advocates have long said, even though many Americans are eligible.

Federal data indicates that nearly half a million people were behind bars awaiting trial in mid-2022, the most recent data available. Those who are citizens and do not have a conviction for a disenfranchisement on their record retain their rights, as do many of those serving sentences for misdemeanor crimes.

“One of the things we heard from people who had previously been incarcerated was that being able to have a say in this election was really important for them to remember that even though they are navigating the criminal legal system, they are still a member of a community, a citizen of Colorado, and that they I still had rights and obligations,” Gonzales said.