News & Updates from LWVDC

Reflecting on data from this year’s primary election, the turnout rate for registered incarcerated voters topped the DC citywide turnout rate, as well as turnout from any ward. After assembling voting data from both the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and the DC Department of Corrections (DOC), the DC Board of Elections (BOE) shared that DOC turnout was 52% and BOP turnout was 38% compared with citywide turnout rates of about 26%. 

Sources include: District of Columbia Corrections Information Council and Board of Elections Thematic Report.

DC’s Restore the Vote Amendment Act of 2020, legislation led by DC Councilmember Robert White, granted all DC citizens who are incarcerated in prison the right to vote from prison if otherwise eligible. The DC Board of Elections now has a dedicated team serving these citizens and LWVDC has a small team canvassing the DC Jail and nearby federal prisons. We register voters and provide election information. Among those who register, the turnout demonstrates the commitment of incarcerated voters to participation in our democracy.

Supporting the 2024 primary election, LWVDC members Charles Thornton, Angie Whitehurst, Anne Laroche, David Schultz and Myra Woods have canvassed and registered incarcerated voters in both the BOP and the DC Department of Corrections.

We have also worked to equip voters with the election information they need through our VOTE411 voter’s guide. LWVDC member Kathryn Ray and her daughter have been essential to delivering VOTE411 mailings for the primary, creating and downloading the VOTE411 candidate information. After formatting and printing all that information, we collaborated with the DC BOE, the Corrections Information Council, volunteers from ReThink Justice, and the Free Minds Book Club to mail nearly 1,000 pieces to DC voters in the BOP. VOTE411 candidate information is organized by ward, giving each incarcerated voter only information about the candidates running for office relevant to their DC address.

To read more about the significance of DC’s implementation of the Restore the Vote Amendment Act, take a look at these sources. 

Links for Voting Reference Materials for Incarcerated People

• Voting While Incarcerated Video – produced by More Than Our Crimes. A DC roundtable which includes CM Robert White and a roundtable of formerly incarcerated voters.
• Laws that Govern Jail Based Voting – June 2024 – A 50 State Legal Review. Aaron Rosewood, Harvard Law School, and Tova Wang, Senior Researcher in Democratic Practice, Ash Center for Democratic innovation and Governance, Harvard Kennedy School.
• A Guide to State Voting Rules that Apply After a Criminal Conviction – US Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, July 1, 2023 – This guide walks readers through a series of questions to help them understand how each state’s laws work. And it gives information about how to reach officials in a particular state if someone wants to register to vote or if they have additional questions.
• Jail-Based Voting in the District of Columbia – A Case Study, Jan 2024, Harvard Kennedy School, Ash Enter for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Tova Wang.
• Prison Policy Initiative, How Many People are Locked Up – The big picture with a look at the 1.9 million people in 1,566 state prisons, 98 federal prisons, 3,116 local jails and 1,323 juvenile correctional facilities, 142 immigration detention facilities, and 80 Indian country jails.