NJ TV’s Leah Mishkin reports
Over 102,000 people are denied the right to vote in New Jersey because of a criminal conviction, but a pending piece of legislation is looking to change that, as well as work toward correcting racial disparities in the political process.
The bill would grant people in prison, on parole or on probation in the state the right to vote again in their home communities. If they’re still in prison, they would vote by mail.
A report from the NJ Institute for Social Justice says a black adult in New Jersey is 12 times more likely to be sent behind bars than a white adult, while a black child is 30 times more likely than a white child to be detained or committed.