Felon voting rights being tested at state Supreme Court
The State Supreme Court is hearing an expedited challenge to the law that restored voting rights to more than 55,000 Minnesotans with felony convictions.
The court bypassed the Court of Appeals, hearing oral arguments on Monday in the case brought forth by the conservative group, Minnesota Voters Alliance, less than a year after the law took effect.
Here's what you need to know.
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Monday's oral arguments
The original suit was dismissed last year by Anoka County Judge Thomas Lehmann. The Minnesota Voters Alliance is asking that it be reissued.
Because the rights were not restored as a part of a broader civil rights package, such as serving on a jury or holding public office, the lawyer for the non-profit argued in court that the legislature overstepped their authority, and the law is therefore unconstitutional.
Chief Justice Natalie Hudson did not provide a time frame for the opinion. The next election isn't until June when early voting starts for the state's primary.
More: Millions of people with felonies can now vote after widespread reform. Most don’t know it.
The Restore the Vote Act
Last year, Democratic Gov. Tim Walz signed the Restore the Vote Act into law after decades of work of legislators and Attorney General Keith Ellison.
The law made felons immediately eligible to vote once they left incarceration, even if they are still serving parole or supervised release and allotted roughly $200,000 for voter education.
Assistant Attorney General Nathan Hartshorn said during oral arguments the law made 57,000 individuals eligible to vote.
More: Virginia governor's rollback of rights restoration has disenfranchised thousands of voters
Where can felons vote across the country?
Minnesota joined 21 other states in their move to enfranchise felons last year upon release.
States like the District of Columbia, Maine and Vermont do not take the right to vote away from felons.
Early voting in the state's primary starts in June.
— Sam Woodward is the Minnesota elections reporting fellow for USA Today. You can reach her at swoodward@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Felon voting rights challenge heard at Minnesota Supreme Court
