RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging how Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) decides whether or not to restore voting rights to convicted felons upon their release.
In Virginia, convicted felons automatically lose their right to vote — unless it’s restored by the governor.
Previous governors automatically restored rights to certain non-violent felons. However, Youngkin has changed that process, instead electing to review each case individually.
The lawsuit argued that Youngkin’s process violated a constitutional clause preventing the government from using arbitrary discretion to prevent someone from exercising their First Amendment rights.
“At base, the plaintiff is arguing the way the governor determines when to restore rights ought to be viewed as a licensing system,” said Henry Chambers, a law professor at the University of Richmond.
According to Chambers, licensing systems do not require much discretion when determining whether or not a license should be provided.
“You can see the plaintiffs arguing, ‘Yes, I committed a crime. Yes, it was a felony. Yes, I lost my right to vote — but the governor can restore that right, and the way he should do that is based on a regularized process that does not unfairly or arbitrarily stop me from regaining my rights,’” Chamber said.
However, the court found that, because a felon has already lost the right to vote, Youngkin isn’t denying them a chance to exercise that right.
“The court here said the ex-offender doesn’t have a pre-existent right, because what we are trying to figure out is whether the rights will be restored — so no application,” Chambers said.
A statement from Youngkin’s office said they were “pleased” with the court’s ruling.
