CINCINNATI — Major McNeil III has been waiting for this moment for a long time.
“I was grateful. I was really grateful,” said McNeil III.
For years, he thought he wasn’t allowed to register to vote.
“I was under the belief as a lot of people are, you have been convicted of a crime. You lose that right,” said McNeil III.
But in Ohio, your voting rights are restored after you serve your prison sentence. That means, even convicted with a criminal record, you can vote.
“I can vote. That right’s been restored, and I have a chance to effect policy,” said McNeil III.
He’s been working with the Hamilton County Office of Re-entry to make sure he’s going through the process properly.
“When you think about someone getting back into the community successfully, civic participation is a part of that,” said Office of Re-entry Director Trina Jackson.
Jackson and her team help ex-felons get back on their feet after their release. Now she says they’re pushing to get more to vote.
“We wanna make them aware of that because a lot of the public policy and things that are created are often barriers to them, and they don’t even know to advocate for themselves because they don’t think they can vote,” said Jackson.
But she says it’s not just people with a criminal record who can vote, but also people still in jail.
“Even if you are currently in the Justice Center, and you have not been sentenced, you still have the right to vote. The Board of Elections will actually send a non-partisan group to the Justice Center so you can register and you can vote,” said Jackson.
That could turn into thousands more voters like McNeil III, now registered to vote in this election.
“It’s important to go out there and let your voice be heard,” said McNeil III.
But according to the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office, you’re banned from voting at all if your conviction is related to an election, like voter fraud, but for just about anything else, you can vote if you’ve served your time.
For registration, mail-in voting, and general election information, click here. For full election coverage, visit Spectrum News 1 Ohio’s special section, Decision 2020.
