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Ex-felons could face another roadblock shortly after having voting rights restored in Florida

The history of voting rights in the United State is one of overcoming roadblocks time and time again for different sects of people. The latest of which in Florida was for the estimated 1.6 million ex-felons who re-claimed the right to vote in the latest past election.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The history of voting rights in the United State is one of overcoming roadblocks time and time again for different sects of people. The latest of which in Florida was for the estimated 1.6 million ex-felons who re-claimed the right to vote in the latest past election.

Ex-felons, with exception to those facing murder-related charges and sex crimes, were able to register to vote this year, as long as they served out their sentence, paid restitution, and finished out their parole or service hours.

A new requirement could complicate things though.

On Tuesday a Florida Republican committee moved a bill forward to require ex-felons to pay off all additional court fees and costs before being able to vote, although it wasn't part of Amendment 4 when passed on the ballot. 

Ben Frazier, an ex-felon and local activist with the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville, says this is history repeating itself.

"There have been attempts to stop black folks and poor folks from voting," said Frazier. "They had the poll tax, they had the literacy test, they had the 'count the beans in the jar tax, and then we’ll allow you to vote.'"

The poll tax, as he mentioned, began in the U.S. in the 1890s as a legal way to keep African Americans from voting in southern states, essentially working as a voting fee.

This week Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez of New York tweeted that the new measure was "a poll tax by any other name."

Kimberly Wright, a mother of three in Jacksonville, says she became a felon at the age of 19, just as she left foster care.

"I was homeless and was sleeping in an empty apartment and was given a burglary charge," said Wright. "I feel like if you’ve done the time for what you’ve done you shouldn’t be punished and have no rights at all."

She says her past shouldn’t define her daughters’ futures, because she wants to vote for issues that impact them.

Jimmy Midyette is an attorney for the ACLU in Jacksonville. He calls the measure unconstitutional.

"It has to do with their children’s school board, it has to do with City Council, all the elected officials that have an impact on our lives," said Midyette. "Adding extra steps, putting new barriers in the way, restricting amendment four, that is against the will of the voters."

According to the Associated Press, Republican Representative James Grant said the amendment approved by voters didn’t define what it means to complete a sentence and didn’t define sexual felony. He rebuked advocates for felons who contended the bill language was politically motivated.

Citing court transcripts, Grant said that when lawyers representing the advocates for felons explained the ballot language to the Supreme Court, they said court costs and fees would be part of completing a sentence and other details would have to be worked out in implementing the amendment.

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