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LAS Faults Derelict Voting Rights Information in NYC Jails

Attorneys at The Legal Aid Society are calling out the City for failing to enforce a legally required mandate informing incarcerated New Yorkers of their constitutional right to vote, as reported by Gothamist.

In a letter addressed to City Hall, the Department of Correction, and state Board of Elections, Legal Aid faulted jail officials for not distributing voter information packets for eligible people in custody as part of a legally mandated initiative.

“The overwhelming majority of the clients we spoke with had not received voter registration information,” the letter sent Thursday reads. [“They] confirmed that there were no posters or signs with voter information and that they had not received voter registration education.”

“Without any clear policies about whether voter education engagements are happening […] systematic disenfranchisement is taking place,” said Anthony Posada, a Supervising Attorney with The Legal Aid Society’s Community Justice Unit.