Article

A Violation of the Social Contract: Felony Disenfranchisement in The United States

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Abstract

This paper examines the history and contemporary implications of felony disenfranchisement, which denies voting rights to individuals with felony convictions. Using social contract theory, I assert that felony disenfranchisement is constitutionally questionable, given that it undermines the integrity of the democratic process. The paper also exposes historical and ongoing racial disparities in the application of felony disenfranchisement laws, mainly how they disproportionately target communities of color. In a constitutional context, this paper analyzes how felony disenfranchisement provisions interact with the Eighth Amendment’s Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. Lastly, this paper examines landmark Supreme Court cases that had failed to establish any precedent for ending felony disenfranchisement practices. Overall, this paper aims to emphasize the need for legal reform and to highlight the injustice that felony disenfranchisement brings about.

Keywords: Felony Disenfranchisement, 8th Amendment, 14th Amendment