Mississippi legislators won’t smooth the path this year to restore voting rights after some felonies

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS
Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Civil rights advocates say Mississippi needs to simplify the process of restoring voting rights to people convicted of some felonies. The Republican-controlled House passed a bill that would have done so. But the bill died when the Republican chairwoman of the Senate Constitution Committee did not bring it up for a vote. The state removes voting rights for 22 crimes, including murder, rape, arson, bigamy and timber theft. People can get them restored by getting a pardon from the governor or by persuading legislators to pass a bill for them on a case-by-case basis. Both solutions are rarely used.