New Report from The Sentencing Project Exposes Barriers to Voting for Incarcerated Citizens in Maine and Vermont

[Washington, D.C.] — A  new report,  ‘Voting From Prison: Lessons From Maine and Vermont’ released today by The Sentencing Project, finds that incarcerated citizens in Maine and Vermont still face significant barriers to casting a ballot. The report reveals a troubling disconnect: having the legal right to vote while incarcerated does not guarantee the ability to exercise that right. With an estimated one million eligible voters currently completing a felony-level sentence in prisons or jails across the United States, the findings underscore the urgent need to remove systemic barriers to voting in correctional facilities.

“The right to vote is fundamental to building a truly inclusive democracy, but even when there is a right to vote in prison, incarcerated people still face challenges in exercising it. How can we call our elections free and fair if eligible citizens cannot access the ballot while incarcerated?” said Kristen Budd, Senior Research Analyst at The Sentencing Project and report author. “There is more work to be done to close the gap between the law on the books and the law in practice when it comes to voting during incarceration, and learning from the experiences of incarcerated people, Departments of Corrections staff, and partners is a critical step.”

Key Findings:

• Nearly 75% of incarcerated individuals surveyed said voting is important to them, yet almost half did not know how to vote from within their facility.
• Barriers included:
  • Lack of information about voting rights, candidates, dates and deadlines
  • Complex registration and ballot procedures
  • Unpredictable mail services
  • Insufficient staff training and support

While Maine’s and Vermont’s Department of Corrections staff demonstrated support for incarcerated residents exercising their right to vote, the report recommends additional steps that Departments of Corrections, election officials, and advocates can take to ensure incarcerated citizens can fully participate in the democratic process:

• Establish in-person polling stations in prisons, modeled after successful programs in jails in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Houston.
• Implement systemwide voting policies and practices in all correctional facilities.
• Provide comprehensive voter education for incarcerated individuals about their right to vote and how to vote during incarceration, including candidate information.
• Train corrections staff to support and facilitate the voting process.
• Foster partnerships between correctional institutions, election officials, and civil society organizations.

The Sentencing Project urges corrections officials, policymakers,  and advocates to act on these recommendations. Ensuring that every eligible citizen can vote—regardless of incarceration status—is essential to building a truly inclusive democracy.

Voting From Prison: Lessons From Maine and Vermont is part of The Sentencing Project’s broader effort to expand access to the ballot through criminal legal reform and to position the organization as a leading voice on voting rights and democratic inclusion. You can read the full report here.

The Sentencing Project will host their annual Civic Power: Democracy Unchained, a convening of advocates, researchers and justice-impacted activists to discuss strategies to advance voting rights for people currently and formerly incarcerated July 9th-13th in Chicago, IL.