Statement of U.S. Rep. Kendrick B. Meek Regarding the Supreme Court's Refusal to Hear Key Florida Voting Rights Case

Statement of U.S. Rep. Kendrick B. Meek Regarding the Supreme Court's Refusal to Hear Key Florida Voting Rights Case

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Congressman Kendrick B. Meek reacted to the Supreme Court's decision not to hear arguments in a case challenging Florida's ban on voting by citizens with felony convictions. The case, Johnson v. Bush, sought to overturn the ban on the grounds that it violated the Voting Rights Act and the U.S. Constitution.

"Today's decision by the Supreme Court is a defeat for our democracy. This case has implications for the millions of Americans who have served their sentences and now seek to rejoin society. It is simply reprehensible that someone could be stripped of voting rights for life after having paid their debt to society.

"The disenfranchisement of hundreds of thousands of Floridians will continue to shroud Florida's voting rights laws and procedures, which have gained national attention and caused international embarrassment.

"Recent estimates show that the percentage of African Americans of voting age who have lost the right to vote is nearly twice as high as the percentage of non-African Americans, and that over twelve percent of those disenfranchised are Hispanic.

"I will continue to support efforts in Congress and in Florida to end discriminatory voting bans. This upcoming Monday I will host a workshop to assist my constituents in navigating the complex restoration of rights process, and I strongly urge law-abiding citizens who have lost their rights to attend this important event to start the process of rights restoration."

http://kendrickmeek.house.gov/press/2005.11.14.shtml