Georgia Justice Project combats post-sentence voter restrictions

August 10th, 2022

More than 5 million Americans are estimated to have been prohibited from voting in 2020 due to restrictive laws related to felony convictions.

On the Wednesday edition of “Closer Look,” Georgia Justice Project executive director Doug Ammar discusses the state’s voting laws following criminal charges.

In Georgia, the suspension of voting rights during criminal sentences may extend beyond physical incarceration. To re-establish voter eligibility, all obligations to the state — including probation — must be absolved. Part of the organization’s mission is to encourage voter eligibility for those under sentence.

“I think everybody should be able to vote. All of these issues [that] have taken the right to vote away based on the criminal justice system [point to] a long, terrible legacy of the racial and disparate impact of the criminal justice system,” Ammar said.