16 | BALANCING THE SCALES | July 19, 2021
Voting Rights coalition registers voters, pushes Beshear KFTC members and allies are hard at work in the field: community tabling and knocking on doors to find Kentuckians with felonies in their past and helping them to register to vote if they got their rights back through Beshear’s executive order. This work is being integrated into existing canvassing efforts and some stand-alone events, particularly in Lexington where Tayna Fogle is leading weekly talking events. These events are also key places to circulate our Voting Rights petition to identify supporters and get them involved. Over seventy people attended a texting training a few weeks ago and we’re continuing that effort to reach out to people and register them to vote remotely as well. If you know someone with a felony in their past and you’re not sure whether they got their right to vote back, you can check at www.CivilRightsRestoration.ky.gov. The Kentucky Voting Rights Coalition has created breakout teams, with some teams meeting regularly to focus on a particular geography or strategy, like training, lobbying, texting, or field work in Lexington. You can join upcoming meetings of these teams on Mobilize (see “Take Action” box).
of the session about a constitutional amendment to restore voting rights to people with felonies in their past, and hope to build enough momentum to pass the legislature early next year and land on the November 2022 ballot. Our allies at the Kentucky Equal Justice Center have filed a lawsuit after discovering that, when Beshear took office, over 2,400 applications for voting rights were pending in the Governor’s office but Beshear has never responded to these. We sent a letter written by KFTC’s Chairperson calling on Beshear to answer these applications, but have not received a response. (See the content of the letter below.)
VOTING RIGHTS ACTIONS:
TAKE ACTION!
Send an email to your state legislators: tinyurl.com/y34v3dxp Send an email to Governor Beshear: tinyurl.com/6pb3p75j Find other opportunities at: www.mobilize.us/kftc/
Members Jessica Clark and Carl Haddix volunteered to table and build relationships with the citizens of the east end of Lexington. Sixty people signed a petition in support of restoring voting rights to Kentuckians with a felony in their past!
We’re continuing to meet with legislators outside
Open letter to Governor Andy Beshear about Voting Rights The following letter from KFTC’s Chairperson Cassia Herron was sent to Governor Beshear on June 17, 2021. The letter has received no response from the Governor’s office. Our allies at the Kentucky Equal Justice Center have filed a lawsuit to get Beshear to respond to the 2,400 Kentuckians who have submitted applications to have their voting rights restored with no response. Governor Andy Beshear, Kentuckians know that our democracy works best when we all have a voice and a vote. Your 2019 executive order attempted to help reduce disenfranchisement of Kentuckians with felony records in their past, and was a huge step toward a healthy democracy. I want to thank you for taking action and to let you know it’s not enough. Kentuckians For The Commonwealth and the 44
member organizations of the Kentucky Voting Rights Coalition have invested immensely into reaching these people and registering them to vote. We’ve knocked doors, made phone calls, tabled at community events, and more. We’ve helped people navigate the process of learning whether their rights were restored, registered those who are eligible, and helped people apply who are not. Again, it was not enough to significantly increase voter turnout in the last election cycle. We will do more and want your support. Over 2,400 applications for voting rights were pending when you took office, having been ignored by the previous administration. We’ve met some of these people over the past 2 years and heard their frustrations. They want to hear from you. We urge you to respond to those applications, and
to the Kentuckians who submitted them with hopes of participating in and strengthening our democracy. Their rights are on your desk and in your hands, and they deserve an answer. We’d love to hear back from you and gain some insights into why this hasn’t happened yet, how you might rectify this situation, and how we might help you. Thanks for your attention to this matter.
Cassia Herron KFTC Chairperson
