Florida approves amendment restoring voting rights to ex-felons

Voting rights for felons.
(Image credit: Loren Elliott/Getty Images)

Florida has approved a constitutional amendment to restore voting rights to ex-felons who have completed their sentences and were not convicted of murder or felony sexual offenses, Bloomberg and NBC News report.

With 71 percent of precincts reporting, the amendment has the approval of 64 percent of voters, The New York Times reports. It needed at least 60 percent approval to pass.

This means that over one million Floridians will now automatically regain the right to vote, NBC News reports, making the result highly significant for future elections. The measure received bipartisan endorsements, Vox reports, and HuffPost describes this as "one of the most dramatic expansions of the franchise in modern times."

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.