Forget about the fact that the great majority of felons vote Democrat; California Governor Jerry Brown had no political motivations at all when he signed AB 2466 on Wednesday allowing thousands of felons in California to vote.
Starting January 2017, convicted felons still in jail will be able to cast their vote.
Brown eschewed comment when he signed the bill from Assemblywoman Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), who had argued that the bill would reduce the likelihood of convicts committing new crimes. She had boasted, “Civic participation can be a critical component of re-entry and has been linked to reduced recidivism.”
Triumphant on Wednesday, Weber gloated, “I wrote AB 2466 because I want to send a message to the nation that California will not stand for discrimination in voting.”
Daniel Zingale, senior vice president of The California Endowment, echoed, “California is stronger and healthier when more people participate in the electoral process. Mass disenfranchisement for minor offenses is a tragic legacy of the Jim Crow era that disproportionately affects and diminishes the power of communities of color.”
Sen. Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) slammed the bill stating, “It is very disappointing that felons still serving their sentences behind bars will now be able to vote since Governor Brown failed to veto this really bad bill.
The California State Sheriffs’ Assn. and the California Police Chiefs Assn. oppose the bill. As Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood, president of the California State Sheriffs’ Assn., said, “We believe that there have to be consequences to your action, and the consequences of being a convicted felon are that you can’t vote and you can’t possess firearms.”
