In North Carolina, convicted felons lose their right to vote once a final sentence is entered against them. They regain voting rights when the sentence is completed–including any probation time–and all fines have been paid, according to Michelle Mrozkowski, assistant director of the State Board of Elections.
That means someone convicted of a felony, but awaiting the results of an appeal, can vote from prison using an absentee ballot, Mrozkowski says. Once the final judgement is entered in a case, however, the county boards of election are notified and remove the convict from the registration rolls. The county boards send a letter to the person’s voting address to prevent removing the wrong person by mistake–the kind of error apparently common in Florida’s mass purge.
When ex-felons fill out a new voter registration application, they must sign a declaration that their “rights of citizenship” have been restored, and it’s up to the applicant to know what that term means under state law. Signing a knowingly false declaration is a felony itself, and if a voting registrar suspects a falsehood or is tipped off to one, Mrozkowski says, the county probation office should be queried. But in general, once someone’s served his time, he gets to vote–unlike in Florida.
